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LIFE  AND  LABORS 


OF 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


HT.    HKV.    KKKDEHIC    liAHACiA,   D.D. 


LIFE  AND  LABORS 


ov 


Rt.  Rev.  FREDERIC  BARAGA, 


Fint  Bishop  of  Marquette,  Mich. 


TO   WHICH   ARE  ADDED    SHORT    SKETCHES    OF  THE   LIVES 

AND   LABORS   OF   OTHER    INDIAN    MISSIONARIES 

OF  THE  NORTHWEST. 


BY 


P.  CHEYSOSTOMUS  VERWYST,  O.  F.  M. 


OF  LOS  ANGLLEP,  C^I . 


MILWAUKEE,  WIS.: 

M.  H.  WILTZIUS  &  CO., 
19C0. 


Tvptlnamr: 

p.  X.  KATZER, 

Atchiepiscopua  Milwa uchiensis. 

P.  THEODORUS  ARENTZ,  O.  F.  M. 

Minister  Provinciales. 


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PREFACE. 


In   presenting   t)iis   "Life   and   Labors   of   Rt.    Rev. 
Frederic  Jiaraga"  to  the  public,  we  hope  tliat  wc  are  doing 


X  service 


to  religion, 


t^  tnc  Church  in  the  United  States, 
and  to  our  fellow-citizens  in  general.  The  subject  of  our 
narrative  was  a  man  of  uncommon  ability,  learning,  and 
piety.  lie  distinguished  himself  as  author  of  many  works, 
written  for  his  countrymen,  for  his  Indian  converts,  and 
for  linguistic  scholars.  As  Indian  missionary  he  \.a3 
most  wonderfully  successful,  having  converted  more 
Ottawas  and  Chippewas  than  any  other  priest  the  writer 
knows  of.  llis  converts  were  of  the  genuine  kind,  deeply 
religious,  fervent,  and  well-behaved.  If  in  the  course  of 
time  some  of  them,  or  of  their  children,  degenerated  from 
their  pristine  fervor,  it  was  not  his  fault,  but  the  natural 
outcome  of  circumstances  and  environments,  over  which 
he  could  exercise  no  control,  and  which  were  detrimental 
to  Indian  moral  advancement. 

Bishop  Baraga  has  won  the  lasting  love  and  respect 
of  the  people  of  the  Northwest,  among  whom  he  labored 
so  long  self-sacrificingly.  To  perpetuate  his  memory  unto 
future  generations  the  remembrance  of  his  life  of  labor, 
prayer,  and  suffering,  is  the  object  of  this  work.  We  are 
well  aware  of  its  many  imperfections,  but  we  have 
endeavored  to  give  the  reader  a  perfectly  reliable  account 
of  Bishop  Baraga's  life  and  labors.  We  have  generally 
let  him  tell  his  own  story,  as  there  is  a  peculiar  charm  in 
reading  the  accounts  he  gives  us  of  his  doings  and  happen- 
ings. Moreover,  they  give  us  an  insight  into  the  motives 
and  feelings  that  actuated  him  in  all  he  did  and  suffered 


VI 


PREFACE. 


J! 


^*i.: 


f 


for  God  and  the  spreading  of  His  kingdom  on  earth. 
Besides,  our  object  is  to  edify  the  reader  by  the  recital  of 
the  labors,  trials,  and  success  of  a  truly  Apostolic  man,  a 
Christian  gentleman  in  the  full  sense  of  the  word,  a  model 
Indian  missionary  and  bishop.  He  united  in  himself  the 
activity  of  Martha  and  the  contemplativeness  of  Mary, 
being  wonderful  in  both. 

We  have  utilized  the  annual  reports  of  the  Leopoldin 
Society  of  Vienna,  Austria,  kindly  furnished  us  by  His 
Grace,  Most  Rev.  Frederic  Katzer,  of  Milwaukee,  and 
Very  Rev.  Father  Rainer,  rector  for  many  years  of 
the  Salesianum.  Baraga  usually  wrote  to  the  above- 
named  society  every  year,  giving  a  faithful  account  of  his 
labors,  trials,  and  success  in  the  Indian  missionary  field. 
We  have  deemed  it  unnecessary  to  always  designate  in 
what  annal  and  on  which  page  were  to  be  found  the 
extracts  taken  from  Bishop  Baraga's  letters.  However, 
in  most  cases,  we  have  given  the  dates  of  his  lett^ers  used 
in  the  preparation  of  this  work.  As  to  other  sources  of 
information,  we  have  endeavored  to  always  mention  the 
author's  name  or  the  social  standing  of  our  informant,  thus 
enabling  the  reader  to  judge  of  the  reliability  of  his  state- 
ments. Truth  the  reader  wants,  not  exaggeration,  or 
foolish  tales.  Our  work  is  but  a  compilation.  We  have 
put  together  and  arranged  what  others  personally 
acquainted  vith  the  saintly  man  have  said  and  written. 
Although  tl  s  work  has  cost  us  much  labor,  it  has  been  a 
labor  of  \o\<i. 

We  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  all  those  who  have 
kindly  aided  us  in  the  compilation  of  this  work.  Besides 
the  above-named  Most  Rev.  Archbishop  and  Very  Rev. 
Rector  of  the  Milwaukee  seminary,  we  are  under  great 
obligation  to  Rt.  Rev.  elohn  Vertin,  Bishop  of  Marquette, 
who  kindly  loaned  us  two  volumes  of  Baraga's  journal 
or  diary,  which  have  been  of  great  service  to  us;  also  to 
his  worthy  predecessor,  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Mrak,  for  infor- 


PREFACE. 


VU 


matiou  given.  Moreover,  we  wish  to  give  public  expres- 
sion of  our  thanks  to  Hon.  Richard  R.  Elliottt,  of  Detroit ; 
Hon.  C.  D.  O'Brian,  attorney-at-law,  of  St.  Paul,  Minn. ; 
to  Rev.  G.  Terhorst,  the  worthy  pastor  of  the  L'Anse 
Indian  mission;  to  Rev.  John  Chebul,  of  Xewberry, 
Mich. ;  Hon.  Fr.  Jacker  and  Hon.  E.  Edgerton,  of  Jacobs- 
ville,  Mich.,  and  all  friends  and  helpers. 

If  we  have  succeeded  in  making  saintly  Bishop  Baraga 
more  known  and  respected,  and  in  so  doing  have  benefited, 
at  least  a  little,  the  cause  of  religion  and  the  well-being  of 
society,  we  shall  consider  our  labor  amply  rewarded. 

Fr.  Chrysostomus  Verwyst,  O.  F.  M., 

August  15th,  1900. 


I 


M 


INDEX. 

CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE. 
Indians  of  the  Northwest — Their  Language,  Origin,  Religious 

Beliefs,  and  Customs  1 

CHAPTER  II. 

First  Attempts  at  Evangelizing  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest — 
Jogues  and  Raymbault  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  Mich. — Gar- 
reau  and  Di'euJllettes 10 

CHAPTER  III. 

Father  Menard,  S.  J. — His  Labors    near    L'Anse,    Mich.,    and 

Death  in  the  \yilds  of  Wisconsin    13 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Father  Allouez,  S.  J. — His  Apostolic  Labors  in  the  Lake  Supe- 
rior Region  and  Other  Parts  of  Wisconsin 20 

CHAPTER  V. 
Labors  of  Father  Marquette,  S.  J.,  at  the  Mission  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  on  the  Shores  of  Chequamegon  (Ashland)  Bay,  and 
at  St.  Ignace,  Mich 24 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Father  Marquette  Discovers  the  Mississippi. — Establishes  the 
Mission  of  the  Immaculate  Conception,  Illinois. — His 
Edifying  Death  29 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Father  Gabriel  Dreuillettes,  S,  J. — His  Labors  in  Maine,  Can- 
ada, and  Michigan 42 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Missionaries    that    Labored    in    the    Northwest    during    the 

Eighteenth  Century 48 


X  INDEX. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Missionary  Labors  of  Fathera  Richard,  liadin  and  Dejean  in  the 

Northwest,  Prior  to  the  Arrival  of  Father  Baraga 53 

CHAPTER  X. 

State  of  Catholicity  in  the  United  States  at  the  Time  of  Bar- 
aga's Arrival  in  1830 C4 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Description  and  History  of  Baraga's  Birthplace 72 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Birth  and  Early  Education  of  Frederic  Baraga. — Death  of  his 
Dear  Parents. — Ho  Studies  at  Laibach  and  Vienna. — Re- 
solves to  Enter  the  Priesthood. — Is  Ordained  at  Laibach..       77 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Father  Baraga's  Labors  at  St.  Martin's 87 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

F.  Baraga's  Labors  at  Metlika. — He  Resolves  to  Devote  Himself 
to  the  Indian  Missions  of  America. — Is  Received  into  the 
Diocese  of  Cincinnati. — Scene  at  his  Departure  from  Met- 
lika         94 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Father  Baraga  Leaves  Europe. — Incidents  of  his  Journey. — 

Arrives  at  Cincinnati. — His  Labors  in  that  City 102 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Father  Baraga  sets  out  from  Cincinnati  for  his  Indian  Mis- 
sion.— His  Labors  amongst  the  Whites  along  the  Route. — 
He  Arrives  at  Arbre  Croche 109 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
Labors  of  Father  Baraga  in  Arbre  Croche 114 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Father  Baraga's  Voyage  to  Beaver  Island 121 


! 


nf 


INDEX.  xi 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

A  Letter  from  some  Indian  Chiefs  at  Arbre  Croche  to  Bishop 
Fenwick. — Last  Visit  of  IJ.  Fenvvick  to  Arbre  Croche. — 
His  Untimely  Death  from  Cholera. — Baraga's  Account  of 
the  Bishop's  Death 128 

CHAPTER  XX. 

Continuation  of  F.  Baraga's  Labors  during  the  year  1832. — 
His  first  Indian  Prayer-Book  Printed  at  Detroit. — What 
Father  Hiitscherj  C.  S.  S.  R.,  and  others  say  of  Him  and 
His  Work  132 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Baraga's  Labors  during  1833. — Visits  Little  Detroit,  Manis- 
tique,  and  Beaver  Island. — Baptizes  a  Great  Many  Pagans 
during  Pentecost- Week  at  Arbre  Croche 130 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

F.  Baraga's  First  Visit  to  Grand  River. — He  Baptizes  many. — 
Returns  to  Arbre  Croche. — Resume  of  his  Missions. — He 
Leaves  Arbre  Croche,  and  is  Succeeded  there  by  Rev.  F. 
Silndcil,  C.  S.  S.  R 141 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Labors  and  Hardships  of  F.  Baraga  at  Grand  River 148. 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Description  of  Indian  Drunkenness  at  Grand  River. — F.  Bar- 
aga's Life  Endangered. — Indian  Council. — Dedicates  his 
New  Church 153 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

F.  Baraga  Leaves  Grand  River  Mission. — Winters  at  St.  Claire. 

—Goes  to  La  Pointe,  Wis 1G6 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Father  Baraga  Arrives  at  La  Pointe. — Incidents  of  the  Journey. 
— He  builds  his  First  Church  at  Middlefort,  near  the  Old 
Indian  Cemetery 172 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
F.  Baraga's  First  Visit  to  Fond  du  Lac,  Minn 177 


Xii  INDEX. 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
Baraga's  Labors  at  La  i*ointe. — Continued 180 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

F.  Baraga  Goes  to  Europe. — He  is  Received  Everywhere  with 
Great  Distinction. — Lectures  on  Indian  Mission, — Returns 
to  La  Pointe  and  Finishes  his  Church. — First  Confirmation 
in  La  Pointe  by  Bishop  Rese,  in  1838 184 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

State  of  La  Pointe  Mission  during  1839  and  1840. — Peculiar  In- 
dian Customs  at  Funerals. — Mode  of  Burial. — Interesting 
Letter  of  Father  Pierz 180 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

F.  Baraga's  Personal  Appearance  and  Peculiar  Traits  of  Char- 
acter.— His  Humility,  Poverty,  Kindness,  Burning  Zeal, 
and  Restless  Activity. — La  Pointe,  Population,  Puriuits, 
and  Early  Settlers 195 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 
Father  Baraga  Laments  the  Want  of  Indian  Missionaries. — He 

takes  down  his  Church  and  builds  a  Larger  One 201 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

F.  Baraga  Leaves  La  Pointe  to  Found  the  Mission  at  L'Anse, 

Mich 205 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

Father  Baraga's  Labors  in  L'Anse  Mission  during  the  Years 
1843  and  1844. — Bishop  Henni,  of  Milwaukee,  Visits  La 
Pointe  in  1844 209 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Baraga's  Labors  during  1844  and  1845. — His  Long  Journeys 

on  Foot  to  Distant  Missions 214 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Wonderful  Escape  of  Father  Baraga,  when  crossing  Lake  Su- 
perior in  a  small  sail-boat. — His  Adventure  on  a  Floating 
Field  of  Ice 219 


i 


10 


INDEX. 


Xlll 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 
Further  Testimony  aa  to  F.  Baraga's  Work  at  L'An?e.— Acci- 

dent  on  Lake  Huron  in  1852 223 


CHAPTER  XXXV 111. 
F.  Baraga  in  Detroit  Superintending  the  re-Printing  of  Some 
of  his  works. — Bishop  Lefevre  Gives  Confirmation  for  the 
First  Time  in  the  L'Anse  Mission.— The  Indians  there  ail 
take  the  Total-Abstinence  Pledge 227 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 
Opening  of  the  Copper  Mines  in  Northern  Michigan.— Baraga 
Visits  the  New  Missions.— He  Labors  on  his  Famous  Chip- 
pewa Grammar  and  Dictionary 230 

CHAPTER  XL. 
Father  Baraga  goes  to  Fond  du  Lac ;  Baptizes  a  Very  Old  and 
Blind   Woman.— Suffers   Much   Hardship   on   his   Return- 
Journey  234 


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CHAPTER  XLI. 
Continuation  of  F.  Baraga's  Labors  at  L'Anse  in   1848  and 

1849. — The  New  York  Observer's  Estimate  of  his  Work. 

Hardships  and  Dangers 240 

CHAPTER  XLIL 
Letter  of  Rt.  Rev.  Peter  Paul  Lefevre,  Bishop  of  Detroit.— 
F.  Baraga  gets  his  Grammar  and  Instruction  Book  Printed 
in  Detroit.— New  Labors.— His   Terrible  Journey  in  the 
Winter  of  1850-'51 249 

CHAPTER  XLI  1 1. 
Baraga's  Elevation  to  the  Episcopal  Dignity.— Sault  Ste.  Marie 
his  Episcopal  See.— A  Short  Ilistorical  Notioe  of  the  Place 
and  of  the  Missionaries  who  labored  there 255 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 
Bishop  Baraga's  Pastoral  Letter  to  the  Faithful  of  his  Vica- 
riate-Apostolic   Announcing  to  them  his  Elevation  to  the 
Episcopal  Dignity   201 


w 


XIV 


INDEX. 


CHAPTER  XLV. 

B.  Baraga's  First  Letter  to  the  Leopoldine  Society  after  his 
Elevation  to  the  Episcopacy. — He  Coes  to  Europe  to  Secure 
Priests  and  Funds  for  His  Infant  Diocese 273 

CHAPTER  XLVI. 

B.  Baraga  Returns  Home. — Goes  to  La  Pointe,  Ontonagan,  and 

L'Anse.— First  Ordination  at  the  "Sault." 279 

CHAPTER  XLVII. 

Labors  of  B.  Baraga  in  185G. — Visits  Fort  William,  Grand  Port- 
age, Superior,  La  Pointe,  and  Other  Places 284 

ch:^pter  xlviii. 

Happenings  During  1857. — B.  Baraga  Makes  his  Annual  Visit 
to  the  Principal  Missions  of  his  Diocese. — Interesting  Com- 
munication of  Hon    C.  D.  O'Brien 288 


C  IAPTER  XLIX. 

B.  Baraga  Attends  the  II.  Provincial  Council  of  Cincinnati  and 
has  Three  of  His  Works  Printed. — His  Hardships  on  the 
Way. — He  Visits  the  Missions  of  Lakes  Michigan  and  Su- 
perior   


29.5 


CHAPTER  L. 

Death  of  Rev.  Lautisehar. — B.  Baraga  Visits  his  mission-Sta- 
tions.— Arrival  of  Father  Chebul. — Baraga's  Opinion  as  to 
the  Feasibility  of  Forming  Indian  Priests  and  Sisters. — 
Interesting  Reminiscences  of  Rev.  Chebul  and  B.  Baraga. . 


303 


CHAPTER  LI. 

Doings  and  Happenings  of  B.  Baraga  During  the  Year  1860. — 
Great  Miseries  on  his  Winter  Trip  to  Mackinac  and  St. 
Tgnace. — Visits  Superior,  La  Pointe,  and  Bad  River  Reser- 
vation.— Interesting  Entries  from  his  Journal 315 


CHAPTER  Lll. 

Bishop  Baraga  Attends  the  III.  Provincial  Council  of  Cincin- 
nati.— Hardships  Endured  on  the  Way  thither. — His  Visit 
to  the  Scattered  Missions  of  his  Diocese 326 


'9 


14 


INDEX.  XV 

CHAPTER  LIII. 

B.  Baraga  Writes  on  the  Civil  War. — He  Establishes  a  new  In- 
dian Mission  at  St.  Martin's  Bay. — Visits  the  Mission  at 
the  "Baye  des  Goulais." 334 

CHAPTER  LIV. 

Bishop    Baraga's   Labors    during   the    Year    18G3. — Anecdotes 

about  Bishops  Baraga  and  Marty 331) 

CHAPTER  LV. 

Labors  of  B.  Baraga  ii    18G4. — Two  Letters,  of  Sept.  18  and 

Nov.  29,  1SG4 345 

CHAPTER  LVL 

Interesting  Account  of  the  Founding  of  the  Sisters'  School  at 
L'Anse  Mission. — B,  Baraga's  First  and  Last  Dying  Gift 
to  the  School 351 

CHAPTER  LVII. 

Removal  of  the  Episcopal  See  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  Mar- 
quette       350 

CHAPTER  LVIII. 
Bishop  Baraga's  Last  Sickness  and  Death 3G2 

CHAPTER  LIX. 

Short  Rsum6  of  the  Life  and  Labors  rf  Bishop  Baraga. — His 
Many  Virtues  and  Accomplishments. — A  Model   Student, 

Priest,  Indian  Missionary,  and  Bishop 3G0 

Short  Biographical  Sketches  of  Missionaries  who  have  La- 
bored Amongst  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest. 

Rev.  Francis  Pierz 379 

Rev.  Otto  Skolla,  0.  S.  F.,  Str.  Obn 393 

Very  Rev.  Edward  Jacker,  V.  G 400 

Rev.  Laurence  Lautischar 410 

Rev.  Theodore  Van  den  Broek,  O.  P 423 

Bishop  Baraga's  Indian  Encyclical  Letter 430 

A  Few  Peculiarities  of  the  Chippewa  Language 44S 

Historical  and  Biographical  Notes 454 

Short  Biography  of  Vincent  Roy 472 


LIFE  AND  LABORS 


OF 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


CHAPTER   I. 


INDIA3iS    OF   THE    NOllTIiWEST  ;    THEIR    LANGUAGE,    ORIGIN; 
RELIGIOUS    BELIEFS   AND   CUSTOMS. 

As  the  subject  of  our  narrative,  lit.  Rev.  Frederic 
Baraga,  labored  long  and  successfully  as  missionary  and 
bishop  among  the  Ottawas  of  Michigan  and  the  Chip- 
pewas  of  Wisconsin,  a  short  dissertation  on  the  language, 
origin,  religioi  '  beliefs  and  customs  of  these  Indian 
nations  will  not  be  out  of  place. 

There  are  at  present  fifty-two  Indian  nations  in  the 
United  States,  each  of  which  has  a  dialect  of  its  own. 
These  fifty-two  dialects  are  reducible  to  eight  distinct 
families  of  laujguages,  each  of  which  differs  as  much  from 
the  others  as  the  Latin,  Slavonic,  Germanic  and  Celtic 
languages  of  Europe  differ  radically  from  each  other.  As 
the  Latin  nationalities,  the  Italian,  French,  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  speak  cognate  tongues,  so  also  do  the  many 
Algonquin  nations  of  the  St.  lawrence  Valley  and  the 
Lake  Superior  country.  To  the  great  Algonquin  family 
belong  the  Algonquins,  properly  called,  the  Montagnais, 
the  Abernakis  of  Maine,  the  Pequods  and  Narragansets, 


-H)it. 


RT.  KEV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


'^ 


the  Dt'liiwaros,  tbo  Ottawas,  the  (Miippowan,  the  Illinois, 
tlic  Saes  and  Foxes  or  Outa^aniies,  the  Pottawotaniis,  the 
^^Fenoniinees,  and,  to  Home  extent,  also  the  (h'ees  of  British 
Anieriea,  in  whose  langiiage  nianv  AlgoiKjuin  words  are 
to  be  found.  'I'hese  nations — wronfjiy  called  Iribcs — onee 
iidiahited  a  traet  of  eountry  whieii  extx^nded  from  the 
Atlantic  on  the  east  to  the  iMississij)i)i  and  British  Colum- 
bia on  the  west,  and  from  the  eontinea  of  the  Esquimoes 
on  the  north  to  the  ^Middle  States  on  the  south,  a  vast  ter- 
ritory almost  as  large  as  Europe. 

The  inhabitants  of  this  immense  territory  spoke 
radindfjj  the  same  language,  each  nation  having  a  dialect 
of  its  own  more  or  less  different  from  the  others,  but 
radically  the  same  as  to  the  roots  of  words  and  the  gram- 
matical structure  of  the  verbs.  However,  as  in  Europe, 
the  German,  Dutch,  Danish  and  Swedish  tongues  are 
radically  (Jerman,  vet  are  now  classified  as  so  manv  dis- 
tinct  languages,  so  we  can  justly  call  the  above-named 
Indian  tongues  so  many  distinct  Indian  languages,  though 
radically  they  belong  to  one  family. 

A  careful  study  of  the  Chippewa  language  has  brought 
the  writer  to  the  conviction  that  the  Indians  belonging  to 
the  Algonquin  family  of  nations  must  have  attained  to 
a  high  degree  of  civilization  at  a  remote  period  of  time 
and  that  their  subsequent  lapse  into  barbarism  was  due  to 
incessant  wars  and  migrations.  Our  opinion  is  based  on 
the  follow^ing  reason :  A  nation's  language  is  a  true  and 
reliable  index  of  the  mental  capacity  and  intellectual 
status  of  its  people.  A  barbarous,  mentally  undevelo]^ed 
race  cannot  originate  a  systematic,  philosophically  regular, 
grammatical  language.  I  think  this  needs  no  ]n'oof. 
Now,  any  one  w'ho  has  a  grammatical  knowledge  of  the 
Chippewa  langnage,  will  concede  that  it  is  wonderfullv 
systematic,  regular,  euphonic,  plastic,  and  expressive.  It 
must,  therefore,  have  originated  with  a  people  mentally 
well  developed^     A  thorongh  stndy  of  the  roots  and  gram- 


INDIANS  OF  TUB  NORTHWEST. 


8 


are 


liar. 
>of! 
Itlio 
illv 
Tt 
illy 
11  n- 


matical  structure  of  the  languago  will  ahow  that  it  is 
Asiatic  in  origin  and  Honiewhat  allied  to  sonio  Euri>i)ean 
tongues.  In  a  fornier  work  of  the  writer,  ''Missi(»nary 
Labors  of  Fathers  Marciiiette,  AUouez  and  Menard  in  the 
Lake  Su|)eri()r  Kegion,"  the  reader  will  tind  a  list,  by  no 
means  eoniplete,  of  Chippewa  words,  wliieh  evidently  havo 
a  common  origin  with  similar  words  in  Euroi)ean  lan- 
guages. To  those  who  love  philological  studies  wo  would 
recommend  Baraga's  Chippewa  Grammar  an*'  Dictionary, 
pidilished  by  a  tirm  in  Montreal. 

Rev.  ^lartin  Farrard,  S.»L,  now  deceased,  composed 
an  exhaustive  dictionary  of  the  Chippewa  language,  which, 
however,  is  still  in  manuscript,  fornj,  as  the  gifted  author 
died  before  completing  his  great  Avork.  lie  iiitended  also 
to  write  a  glossary  to  said  dictionary,  comparing  Chij)pewa 
roots  with  similar  ones  in  Sanscrit,  Greek  and  other 
ancient  and  modern  languages.  Such  a  work  would, 
indeed,  be  highly  interesting  to  students  of  philology. 

As  to  the  origin  of  the  Indian  races,  they  are  no  doubt 
from  Asia.  We  have  seen  in  missionary  periodicals  photo- 
graphic pictures  of  some  Asiatic  people,  and  we  can  truly 
say  that  they  so  closely  resemble  our  Indians  that  there 
is  no  doubt  about  their  common  origin.  Father  Grellon,. 
who  had  labored  for  years  amongst  the  Hurons  of  Canada 
and  had  left  that  country  after  the  destruction  of  the 
Huron  Mission  in  1648-'49-'50,  and  went  to  Asia,  relates 
in  the  ''Lettres  Edifiantes"  that  he  met,  in  Central  Asia, 
a  Christian  Huron  woman  and  heard  her  confession  in  the 
language  which  neither  of  them  had  spoken  for  years. 
This  poor  woman  had  been  sold  as  a  slave  from  tribe  to 
tribe  till  she  was  brought  far  into  the  interior  of  Asia. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  in  remote  times  Asiatic  tribes, 
many  of  whom  are  stili  of  a  roving,  nomadic  disposition, 
crossed  Behring's  Strait,  and,  once  on  American  soil, 
pushed  on  southward  and  in  other  directions.  Moreover, 
the  many  islands  in  the  Pacific  Ocean  seem  to  indicate  that 


BT.  BEY.  FBEDEBIO  BABAGA. 


m 


at  a  remote  period  there  was  a  large  continent,  perhaps  like 
Australia,  between  Asia  and  America.  This  may  have 
become  submerged  in  the  course  of  time,  ages  ago,  and 
perhaps  many  of  the  islands  in  said  ocean  are  but  portions 
of  this  continent.  The  ruins  of  Yucatan,  Mexico,  and 
Peru  point  to  an  Asiatic  origin  and  civilization. 

The  facial  difference  between  some  European  and 
Indian  races  is  not  very  great.  Many  of  our  half-breeds 
strongly  resemble  southern  European  races.  They  have 
very  nuich  the  same  complexion,  dark,  black  eyes,  black 
hair,  etc.  Besides,  it  is  wonderful  how  easily,  by  inter- 
marriage, the  Indian  race  merges  into  the  white.  At  our 
Indian  boarding  schools  can  be  found  quarter-breed  chil- 
dren, that  is,  the  children  of  half-breeds  married  to  whites, 
who  are  perfectly  white,  as  to  feature,  color,  hair,  in  a 
word,  in  every  respect.  This  shows  that  two  or  three 
successive  intermarriages  with  the  whites  are  sufficient  to 
transform  the  Indian  into  a  white. 

Besides,  the  Algonquin  races  seem  to  have  far  more 
intellectual  features  than  the  southern  and  western  Indian 
tribes.  This  would  indicate  that  they  are  descended  from 
a  more  intellectual  type  of  Asiatic  races.  There  is  about 
the  same  difference  between  the  Chippewa  Indians  and 
tho'^^e  of  the  Pacific  Coast  as  there  is  between  the  intel- 
lectual Hindoo  and  the  nomadic  Mongolian  of  Central 
Asi'd.  It  is  our  opinion  that  the  different  Indian  nations 
of  this  continent  belonged  originally  to  different  Asiatic 
nations.  We  hold  that  climatic  changes,  diet,  mode  of 
living,  and  intennarriage  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the 
formation  of  national  features,  color,  intellectual  capacity, 
and  other  ^peculiarities.  It  is  noticeable  that  our  Germans, 
French,  Irish  and  other  foreign  nationalities  gradually 
undergo  considerable  change  of  feature  after  having  been 
in  this  country  many  years.  This  is  especially  true  of 
their  descendants  in  the  second,  third,  and  further  gener- 
ations. 


INDIANS  OF  THE  NORTHWEST. 


ms, 

len 

of 

ler- 


As  to  the  religions  ideas  of  the  Algonquin  family  of 
nations,  they  seem  to  have  undergone  a  considerable  change 
since  the  advent  of  the  first  European  missionaries  in  the 
seventeenth  century.  If  we  can  rely  on  Allouez, 
Marquette,  Charlevoix,  and  others,  the  Indians  of  their 
time  seem  to  have  had  hardly  any  idea  of  a  Supreme 
Being.  Some  tribes  appear  to  have  picked  up  a  vague 
notion  of  such  a  being  from  their  intercourse  with  the 
French. 

Speaking  of  the  Indians  on  the  shores  of  Chequamegon 
(Ashland)  Bay  in  1665,  Father  Allouez  says: 

"There  is  here  a  false  and  abominable  religion,  similar 
in  many  things  to  that  of  some  ancient  pagans.  The 
Indians  here  do  not  acknowledge  any  sovereign  master  of 
heaven  and  earth.  They  believe  that  there  are  many 
manitous,  some  of  which  are  beneficent,  as  the  sun,  the 
inoon,  the  lake,  the  rivers  and  woods;  others  malevolent, 
as,  for  instance,  snakes,  the  dragon,  cold,  storms;  and  in 
general  all  that  appears  to  them  useful  or  injurious  they 
call  a  manitou,  and  they  render  to  such  objects  the  worship 
and  veneration  which  we  give  to  the  true  God  alone. 
They  invoke  them  when  they  go  to  hunt,  to  fish,  to  war, 
or  on  a  voyage.  They  offer  them  sacrifices  with  cere- 
monies only  used  by  such  as  offer  sacrifice 

"For  the  rest,  as  these  people  are  dull,  they  do  not 
achnowledge  any  deity  purely  spiritual.  They  believe 
that  the  sun  is  a  man  and  the  moon  his  wife ;  that  snow  and 
ice  are  also  human  beings,  who  go  away  in  spring  and 
return  again  in  winter;  that  the  devil  dwells  in  snakes, 
dragons,  and  other  monsters ;  that  crows,  hawks  and  other 
birds  are  manitous  and  talk  as  well  as  we  do,  pretending 
there  are  some  Indians  who  understand  their  language 
just  as  some  of  them  understand  a  little  French." 

Another  fact  that  goes  far  to  show  that  in  former  times 
the  Indians,  with  few  exceptions,  did  not  know  nor  wor- 
ship a  Supreme  Being,  is  that  there  is  no  particular  word 


6 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


I 

I; 


I 


il 


for  God  in  their  language.  The  names  they  now  give  to 
God,  e.g..  Great  Master,  Kind  Manitou,  Master  of  Life, 
etc.,  seem  to  be  of  Christian,  not  pagan,  origin.  As  we  see 
from  Father  Alloaez,  the  word  ''manitou"  does  not  mean 
a  spiritual  being  or  God,  but  any  beneficent  or  malevolent 
being,  possessed  of  strange  and,  to  the  Indian,  mysterious 
powers.  We  must  then  conclude  that  the  Indians  of 
former  times,  before  the  advent  of  the  whites,  were  poly- 
theists  and  idolators,  like  the  ancient  Babylonians,  Egypt- 
ians, Greeks,  and  Romans,  and  that  one  of  their  principal 
gods  was  the  sun.  As  among  the  Greeks  and  Romans 
were  to  be  found  a  few  more  enlightened  men,  who  believed 
in  the  one,  true,  living  God,  for  instance,  Socrates,  Plato, 
Cicero,  so  also  we  find  such  men  amongst  the  ancient 
Indians ;  the  masses,  however,  were  polytheists.  But  now 
the  reverse  is  tnie.  The  pagan  Indians  of  our  day  are 
monotheists:  they  believe  and  invoke  the  Great  Spirit. 
But  we  strongly  believe  that  this  is  due  to  their  intercourse 
during  the  last  two  centuries  with  the  French-Canadians, 
who  have  constantly  traded  and  freely  intermarried  with 
them.  Another  result  of  this  intercourse  seems  to  have 
been  the  well-nigh  total  abolition  of  polygamy.  Two 
centuries  ago  polygamy  was  universally  practiced  by  the 
Indians  of  the  Northwest.  At  present  it  is' very  seldom 
that  a  pagan  Indian  has  two  wives.  Two  centuries  ago 
the  missionaries  complain  of  universal  libertinism  and 
horrible  immorality  among  the  Indians.  Xow  Father 
Pierze  tells  ns  that,  w^here  they  are  not  corrupted  by  inter- 
course Avith  the  whites,  pagan  Indians  are  innocent  and 
moral.  The  Indians  of  our  times  are  far  superior  to  their 
forefathers  in  knowledge,  religion,  and  morality,  where 
not  perverted  by  bad  whites. 

Our  pagan  Indian  of  the  Algonquin  family  of  nations 
strongly  believes  in  the  Great  Spirit  and  shows,  deep 
respect  to  Him.  But  his  greatest  concern  is  to  placate  and 
gain  the  good  will  of  the  manitous  or  demi-gods,  with 


INDIANS   OF   THE   NORTHWEST. 


ago 


whom  his  imagination  jieoples  the  sky,  land  and  waters. 
They  have  countless  legends,  some  droll,  some  childishly 
absurd,  about  Menabosho,  or,  as  some  pronounce  it,  Wena- 
boslio.  The  universal  deluge  forms  an  important  point  of 
th^ir  belief.  This  great  catastrophe,  recorded  more  or 
less  distinctly  in  the  ancient  traditions  of  most  all  nations, 
is  related  by  our  Chippewas  in  true  Indian  fashion, 
embellished  with  a  thousand  fantastic,  ridiculous  stories 
about  Menabosho,  who,  it  is  claimed,  remade  the  earth 
after  the  flood  and  for  that  purpose  used  a  muskrat,  who 
dived  down  and  brought  up  from  the  depth  a  little  dirt 
in  one  of  its  paws,  which  Menabosho  dried  in  the  palm  of 
his  hand,  as  he  was  sitting  on  the  top  of  a  high  tree  with 
the  water  up  to  his  chin,  and  blew  around  him  and  where 
ever  the  dust  fell  firm  land  was  formed !  By  constantly 
repeating  the  above  proceeding  he  increased  the  size  of  his 
island  till  it  became  the  earth  as  it  now. 

Besides  Menabosho,  our  pagan  Indians  have  other 
manitous,  whom  they  invoke  at  their  feasts  and  incanta- 
tions. Such  are  Mishiken  and  Oshkabewiss,  his  attend- 
ant or  servant,  who  are  invoked  by  the  medicine-man  at 
the  Indian  incantation  called  Tchissakiwin  in  order  to 
learn  future  events  or  things  going  on  at  a  distance. 
Formerly  Mishibishi,  the  god  of  the  waters  and  storms, 
was  invoked  for  good  luck  when  going  on  a  voyage  or 
fishing  for  sturgeon.  Their  dances  have  a  religious 
character.  They  are  religious  rites  by  which  they  mean 
to  propitiate  the  Great  Spirit.  Hence  they  have  dances 
at  their  meetings  or  deliberations,  when  a  person  is  sick, 
to  make  him  recover,  at  their  funerals  in  the  house  of  the 
deceased,  wdien  about  to  go  to  war,  etc.  They  have  the 
great  medicine-dance,  the  Sioux-dance,  the  war-dance,  the 
squaw-dance,  and  the  scalp-dance. 

Nicholas  Perrot  relates  in  his  "Memoire"  that  when  an 
Indian  would  get  up  a  feast  in  honor  of  the  manitou  he 
meant  to  honor,  he  would  address  to  him  the  following 
prayer : 


8 


RT.  BEV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


V! 


''I  adore  and  invoke  thee  that  thou  mayest  be  favorable 
to  me  in  the  enterprise  I  have  on  hand,  and  that  thou 
mayest  have  pity  on  me  and  my  whole  family.  /  invoke 
all  the  bad  and  good  spirits,  all  those  who  are  in  the  air, 
on  the  earth,  and  imderneath,  that  they  may  preserve  me 
and  my  party,  and  that  we  may  be  able  to  return,  after  a 
happy  voyage,  to  our  country." 

As  to  their  customs,  our  Indians  are  fast  imitating  the 
whites.  They  build  log  or  frame  houses  whenever  they 
have  the  means  to  do  so.  The  wigwam  of  former  times 
is  fast  disappearing,  at  least  among  our  Chippewas,  and 
Avill  soon  be  a  thing  of  the  past,  except  when  they  camp 
out  to  make  maple  sugar,  gather  Avild  rice,  j^ick  berries,  or 
hunt.  They  try  to  get  household  furniture  and  live  like 
the  whites.  A  blanket-Indian  is  seldom  to  be  seen.  Face- 
painting  and  fantastical,  grotesque  dressing  with  feathers, 
beads,  and  other  Indian  paraphernalia  is  indulged  in  only 
by  pagan  Indians  at  their  religious  feasts  and  dances,  also 
when  playing  their  national  game  of  ball,  called  La  Crosse, 
or,  in  Chippewa,  Pagaadowewin. 

Still  they  retain  some  of  their  peculiar  customs.  Thus 
many  women  still  use  the  Tikinagan  or  Indian  cradle  for 
their  little  children,  which  is  certainly  very  convenient  for 
both  mother  and  child,  especially  when  traveling.  More- 
over the  men  are  fond  of  wearing  mocassins  and  garters 
tastefully  ornamented  with  bead-work,  in  the  making  of 
which  Indian  women  are  very  skillful.  They  are  likewise 
fond  of  bright  colors,  and  seem  to  have  little  idea  of  a 
proper  blending  or  juxtaposition  of  colors.  They  often 
put  side  by  side  bright,  glaring  colors,  which  produce  a 
grotesque  effect. 

Our  Catholic  Indians  beautifully  decorate  their 
churches  for  Christmas  and  Corpus  Christi.  They  will 
cheerfully  devote  whole  days  to  this  laudable  work  and 
spare  neither  time  nor  expense  to  decorate  the  church 
nicely.     Chrismass  is  preeminently  an  Indian  holyday,  on 


INDIANS  OF   THE  NORTHWEST. 


I-  of 
'ise 
a 


eir 
■rill 
nd 
ch 
on 


a 


■^ 


Avhich  all,  even  the  most  lukewarm,  attend  the  midnight 
mass.  On  New  Year's  day  they  go  from  house  to  house 
Avishing  each  other  a  "Happy  New  Year."  It  is  the  day 
of  universal  good  will  and  reconciliation.  They  all  go  to 
the  priest  and  shake  hands  with  him,  wishing  him,  too,  a 
Happy  New  Year,  and  kneel  down  to  receive  his  hlessing. 
In  going  from  house  to  house,  they  receive  everywhere 
little  presents  and  occasionally  a  little  '^iire  water,"  too. 
On  the  eve  of  All  Souls'  days,  that  is,  in  the  evening  of 
the  first  of  November,  they  go  to  the  church  and  each  time 
they  pray  for  a  deceased  parent,  child  or  dear  relative,  they 
ring  the  bell,  and  this  goes  on  sometimes  until  midnight 
or  till  the  priest,  tired  of  the  endless  dingling,  locks  the 
church.  This  ceremony  they  call  "Niba-madwessing,'^ 
night  ringing,  whilst  people  are  sleeping. 

Our  Indians  are  open-handed,  liberal,  and  assist  each 
other  readily.  A  miserly,  stingy  Indian  is  disliked  by 
all.  To  be  "a  big  Indian,"  one  must  make  presents,  be 
kind-hearted  and  liberal.  Hence,  at  their  pagan  feasts 
they  give  presents  to  one  another,  sometimes  even  of  great 
value,  such  as  a  horse,  or  blanket,  or  dress.  As  a  rule, 
they  are  not  thievish  or  dishonest.  A  man  with  money  is 
far  safer  amongst  Indians  than  amongst  whites.  To  steal 
is  considered  very  dishonorable,  but  they  are  rather  slow 
to  pay  their  debts,  which  is  easily  accounted  for;  because 
if  an  Indian  owes  a  dollar  he  has  so  many  pressing  wants 
for  which  he  needs  the  dollar  he  has,  that  he  uses  it  to  buy 
what  he  needs  and  forgets  his  debt.  A  merchant  doing 
business  with  them  must  do  it  on  a  cash  basis,  for  if  he 
begins  to  sell  on  credit  he  will  certainly  fail,  as  many  of 
his  Indian  customers  will  never  pay  their  debts.  Although 
the  Indian  has  some  grave  faults,  such  as  sloth,  ficklemind- 
edness,  drinking,  and  playing  cards,  he  has  many  virtues 
which  offset  these  faults,  such  as  docility,  liberality, 
hospitality,  and  others. 


CHAPTER    II. 

FIRST    ATTJ-n[I'T8    AT    EVANGELIZING    THE    INDIANS    OF    THE 

NOIfTllWEST JOGUES  AND  RAYMBAUET  AT  SAULT  STE. 

ZSIARIE^   Alien. OARHEAU  AND  DREUILLETTES. 


h 


|-5  I  • 


As  Bishop  Baraga  was  tlie  worthy,  though  not  iinmedi- 
iite,  successor  of  the  grand  old  Jesuit  Fathers  who  labored 
during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  among 
the  Indians  of  the  Northwest,  we  deem  it  proper  to  devote 
a  few  chapters  to  a  brief  review  of  their  apostolic  labors 
and  sufferings.  These  saintly  men  labored  at  Sault  Ste. 
Marie  and  Arbre  Croche,  at  L'Anse  and  La  Pointe  du 
Saint  Esprit,  and  in  all  those  missions  Father,  afterwards 
Bishop,  Baraga  worked  during  thirty-seven  years. 

The  first  missionaries  that  ever  visited  the  Northwest 
were  Fathers  Isaac  Jogues  and  Charles  Raymbault,  of  the 
illustrious  Society  of  Jesus.  About  the  middle  of  October, 
1C42,  these  two  intrepid  missionaries  arrived  at  Sault  Ste. 
Marie,  Mich.  Some  two  thousand  Indians  from  all  parts 
of  the  Xorthw'est  were  assembled  there  to  celebrate  the 
feast  of  the  dead.  The  Fathers  were  well  received  and 
requested  to  stay  there.  They  told  the  Indians  that  they 
might  establish  a  missionary  station  at  that  place,  provided 
the  latter  were  disposed  to  receive  instruction.  A  council 
was  held,  at  the  conclusion  of  wdiich  the  Indians  assured 
the  Fathers  that  they  greatly  desired  the  happiness  of 
having  them  in  their  midst;  that  they  would  embrace  them 
as  brothers  and  profit  by  their  words.  However,  as  the 
Fathers    were    needed    more   pressingly    elsewhere,    they 


^  rii 


li  :! 


!      ii  ■' 


1  ii 


EVANGELIZING   THE   INDIANS. 


11 


departed,  intending,  no  doubt,  to  establish  a  mission  there 
later  on.  That  same  year,  1642,  Father  Jogues  was 
captured  by  a  roving  band  of  Iroquois,  with  Reno  Goupil 
and  Francois  Couture.  They  were  most  cruelly  tortured 
and  Rene  Goupil  was  shortly  afterwards  tomahawked  by 
the  t;ide  of  Jogues.  Four  years  later,  October  18th,  1846, 
the  latter  was  treacherously  killed  at  the  Indian  village 
of  Gandague,  now  called  Auriesville,  in  Kew  York. 
Ste})s  have  been  taken  looking  to  the  beatification  of 
Father  Jogues,  Rene  Goupil,  and  Oatharina  Tegahkwita, 
the  Iroquois  virgin,  whose  grave  has  been  honored  by 
many  miracles. 

The  next  attempt  to  evangelize  the  Algonquin  tribes* 
of  the  Xorthwest  was  made  in  1656  by  Fathers  Leonard 
Garreau  and  Gabriel  Dreuillettes.  An  Ottaw^a  flotilla  of 
fifty  canoes,  numbering  two  hundred  and  fifty  men, 
arrived  at  Quebec.  When  about  to  return  to  the  upper 
lake  country  the  above-named  Fathers  eud)arked  with 
them  as  thev  themselves  had  asked  for  missionaries  to 
preach  the  gospel  in  their  country.  Unhappily  the 
Ottawa s,  trusting  to  their  superior  numbers,  and  regard- 
less of  danger,  fell  into  an  ambuscade  near  Montreal.  At 
the  first  discharge  of  musketry,  made  by  the  Iroquois  upon 
the  unsuspecting  Ottawas,  a  number  of  the  latter  were 
killed  and  others  dangerously  wounded.  Among  the  latter 
was  Garreau,  whose  spine  was  broken  by  a  bullet  and  who 


*T]ie  word  tribe,  although  now  in  general  use,  is  a  misnomer 
when  applied  to  the  different  Indian  nations  of  America.  The  Chip- 
pewas,  Ottawas,  Foxes,  Illinois,  etc.,  are  distinct  nations,  just  as 
muc'li  so  as  the  Germans,  Swedes,  Dutcli,  etc.,  are  distinct  nationali- 
ties. The  word  tribe  might  be  more  fittingly  applied  to  the  different 
totemic  siihdivisions  of  Indian  nations.  The  northwestern  division 
of  tlie  Algonquin  family  of  nations  comprised  the  Chippewas, 
Ottawas,  Outagamies,  Pottawatamies,  Sacs,  Illinois,  Menominees  and 
other  minor  nations.  They  inhabited  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  and  Illi- 
nois, and  the  north  shore  of  Luke  Superior. 


I  I 


I,  I 


I  ; 


12 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


was  captured  and  dragged  into  the  Iroquois  fort.  After 
suffering  for  three  days  intense  pains  and  miseries  of  every 
kind,  he  was  finally  brought  by  his  captors  to  Montreal, 
where  he  expired,  fortified  by  the  holy  Sacraments,  on  the 
second  of  September,  1656.  Father  Dreuillettes  urgently 
requested  the  Ottawas  to  take  him  along,  when  secretly 
embarking  in  the  dead  of  night,  but  no  one  would  take 
him  in  their  canoe.  Sixteen  years  later,  in  1672,  we  find 
the  same  Father  Dreuillettes  laboring  with  apostolic  zeal 
at  Sault  Ste.  Marie. 


Hi 


%i 


Hi  ;i 


!  :! 


II 


t 


H  \ 


After 
>i  every 
antreal, 
on  the 
rgeutly 
secretly 
Id  take 
we  find 
lie  zeal 


^,lt 


l.A     IJONNK    CATIIKUINK    TB  ;A  11  KOllTA. 


CHAPTER    111. 


i} 


rATiiKit   menaud;   his   laijuhs   nkar  l'ansi:,    Michigan, 

AND    DEATH    IN    THE    WILDS    OF    WISCONSIN. 

Tli«j  pioneer  iniHsioiuiry  of  the  Lake  Superior  eouutry 
was  Rene  Menard,  S.  J.  He  arrived  in  Canada 
in  the  heginning  of  June,  1(140,  in  eonipany  with 
another  Father  and  two  lay  hrothers  of  his  order, 
together  with  two  Sisters  of  Mercy  and  two 
Ursnline  nuns.  He  hd)ored  for  many  years  with 
great  zeal  and  nnieh  fruit  in  the  Huron  missions 
and  among  the  Xipissings  and  Atontrates.  He  was  the 
beau-ideal  of  an  Indian  missionary,  full  of  burning  zeal 
for  the  honor  of  (jod  and  full  of  sympathetie  love  and 
compassion  for  the  poor  Indians.  His  exeeodingly  great 
kindness  won  their  hearts.  After  the  breaking  up  of  tlie 
Huron  missions  in  1048-0,  he  was  employed  among  the 
Indians  and  French  at  Three  Rivers. 

In  1G56  an  extremely  hazardous  mission  was  started 
amongst  the  Iroquois  at  Lake  Cayuga.  Three  Fathers, 
amongst  them  Menard,  two  brothers  and  fifty-three 
Frenchmen,  left  Quebec  on  the  17th  of  May  of  the  above- 
named  year  for  the  new  mission  field.  After  a  long  and 
tedious  voyage  of  about  two  months  they  arrived  at  their 
destination  and  were  received  with  great  demonstrations 
of  joy  by  the  chiefs  and  head  men  of  the  Iroquois  village. 
The  whole  aifair,  however,  was  nothing  but  a  deep-laid 
plot  to  entice  the  missionaries  and  French  to  their  country, 
to  hold  them  as  hostages  in  case  that  any  of  the  Iroquois 
should  be  captured,  and  to  masacre  them  should  they  meet 


14 


RT.  BEV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


i'.  ' 


■r   I 


with  any  reverse  in  their  attacks  upon  the  French  settle- 
ments along  the  St.  Lawrence. 

Father  Menard  soon  collected  around  him  at  Lake 
Cayuga  a  small  flock  of  Christians,  composed  mostly  of 
captives,  brought  together  from  a  score  of  different  tribes 
and  kept  as  slaves  in  the  Iroquois  country.  Misfortune 
had  softened  their  hearts  and  made  them  accessible  to  the 
tidings  of  salvation.  A  letter  of  Menard,  written  about  a 
year  after  the  opening  of  the  Cayuga  mission,  to  his  super- 
ior in  Quebec,  reveals  to  us  the  burning  zeal  of  this  saintly 
missionary  and  the  great  dangers  to  which  he  and  his 
fellow-laborers  were  exposed.     He  writes: 

''I  praise  God  that  your  Reverence  still  takes  an  inter- 
est in  our  affairs ;  but  I  am  a  little  surprised  to  hear  you 
speak  in  a  tone  different  from  that  to  which  we  were  accus- 
tomed. IIow  long  ago  is  it  since  you  wrote  we  had  noth- 
ing to  fear,  that  God  continued  sending  you  wherewith  to 
support  us  in  this  remote  corner  of  the  world  ?  How  is  it 
that  you  now  complain  of  our  too  great  expenses  ?  We  are 
in  a  place  where  the  cost  of  living  is  very  much  greater 
than  among  the  Hurons,  and  where  we  have  no  assistance 
to  expect  from  the  country  itself,  among  false  traitors,  who 
ill-treat  us  by  right  of  prescription.  There  is  a  crowd  of 
captives  here,  gathered  from  all  sides,  who,  after  all,  are 
capable  of  being  made  children  of  God.  Of  these  I  alone 
have,  since  last  year,  baptized  more  than  four  hundred. 
We  walk  with  our  heads  lifted  up  in  the  midst  of  dangers, 
through  insults,  hootings,  calumnies,  tomahawks,  and 
knives,  with  which  they  often  run  after  us,  to  put  us  to 
death.  Almost  daily  we  are  on  the  eve  of  being  massa- 
cred, 'as  dying  and  behold  we  live.'  And  you  tell  us  that 
you  are  no  longer  able  to  support  this  mission !  I  prefer, 
my  Rev.  Father,  to  stand  by  the  last  words  of  your  letter, 
where  you  remark  that  after  all,  if  we  do  our  part  well, 
God  will  do  His  as  far  as  will  be  needed.  Yes,  assuredly, 
He  will  succor  us,  if  we  seek  but  His  glory,  if  we  expose 


■}■ 


FATHER   MENARD. 


15 


our  lives  to  have  His  blood  applied  to  those  poor  abandoned 
souls.  This  very  thing  all  our  Fathers  here  are  doing 
with  incredible  trouble  and  labor.  Should  God,  who  led 
us  into  this  land  of  barbarians,  allow  us  to  be  slaughtered, 
praise  be  to  Him  forever !  Jesus,  His  Gospel,  the  salva- 
tion of  those  poor  souls,  these  are  the  inducements  that 
retain  us  here  and  make  us  tarry,  as  it  were,  in  the  midst 
of  flames.  Men  burnt  and  devoured  are  sights  to  which 
our  eyes  are  accustomed.  Pray  you  to  God  that  He  may 
make  Christians  of  these  cannibals,  and  that  He  may 
strengthen  us  more  and  more;  and  we,  we  shall  beg  Him 
to  move  the  hearts  of  those  who  love  Him,  so  that  they  may 
enable  vou  to  assist  us." 

t 

The  time,  however,  for  the  conversion  of  the  Iroquois 
had  not  yet  come.  The  tomahawk,  treacherously  buried 
for  a  while,  was  raised  again  in  the  spring  of  1G58.  Only 
strategem  and  secret  flight,  most  skillfully  planned  and 
luckily  accomplished,  could  save  the  lives  of  the  Fathers 
and  Frenchmen  secretly  condemned  to  death  by  the  head 
men  of  the  Iroquois  village.  With  a  bleeding  heart, 
Father  Menard  left  with  the  rest  in  the  silence  of  the 
night.  Far  sooner  would  he  have  stayed  with  his  neophy- 
tes, and,  if  necessary,  have  suffered  death  at  his  post.  He 
felt  as  if  his  heart  had  been  torn  out  of  his  body,  or  as  a 
mother  violently  torn  away  from  her  children.  But  obedi- 
ence called  him  away,  aiid  so  he  departed  with,  the  rest. 
Two  yerrs  later  we  see  him  going  to  the  Lake  Superior 
country,  wdiere  he  perished  in  the  wilds  of  Wisconsin,  try- 
ing to  bring  the  consolations  of  religion  to  a  few  starving 
Ilurons  at  the  headwaters  of  Black  River. 

In  1660  an  Ottaw^a  flotilla  of  sixty  canoes  arrived  at 
Three  Rivers.  Two  Jesuit  Fathers  attempted  to  accom- 
pany them  on  their  return  voyage.  One  of  them,  however, 
only  succeeded,  namely,  Menard.  The  other  Father  was 
unceremoniously  set  ashore  at  Montreal.     Before  starting, 


16 


BT.  BEV.    FBEDEBIC   BABAGA. 


it    '■ 


1       g-t 

!  ■  it 


I  I 

15     ' 


I  I 


Father  Menard  wrote  the  foliowing  lines  to  a  reverend 

friend : 

^'My  Rev.  Fathek, — The  Peace  of  Christ  ! 

''I  write  to  you  probably  the  last  word,  and  I  desire  it 
to  be  the  seal  of  our  friendship  until  eternity.  Love  him, 
whim  the  Lord  Jesus  does  not  disdain  to  love,  although 
tlie  greatest  sinner;  for  He  loves  him,  with  whom  He 
deigns  to  share  His  cross.  May  your  friendship,  my  good 
Father,  be  useful  to  me  in  the  desirable  fruits  of  your  holy 
sacrifices.  In  three  or  four  months  you  may  put  me  in 
the  memento  of  the  dead,  considering  the  manner  of  living 
of  these  people,  and  my  age  and  weak  constitution.  I^s^ot- 
withstanding  all  this,  I  have  felt  such  a  powerful  attraction 
and  have  seen  so  little  of  nature  in  this  undertaking,  that 
I  could  not  doubt  but  that  I  would  have  had  eternal 
remorse  had  I  missed  this  opportunity.  We  were  taken  a 
little  by  surprise,  so  that  we  are  unable  to  provide  our- 
selves with  clothing  and  other  necessary  things.  But  He 
who  feeds  the  little  birds  and  clothes  the  lilies  of  the  fields, 
will  take  care  of  His  servants.  Should  we  happen  to  die 
of  misery,  that  would  be  for  us  a  great  happiness.  I  am 
overwhelmed  with  business.  All  I  can  do  is  to  recommend 
our  voyage  to  your  holy  sacrifices  and  to  embrace  you  with 
the  same  heart  as  I  hope  to  do  in  eternity. 

"My  Rev.  Father — Your  very  himible  and  affectionate 
servant  of  JesuS  Christ, 

"R.  Menard. 
^' Three  Rivers,  this  27th  day  of  August,  at  2  o'clock  after 
midnight,  1660." 

The  Ottawa  flotilla,  and  with  it  Father  Menard,  left 
Three  Rivers  on  the  28th  of  August.  The  journey  from 
Three  Rivers  to  St.'  Theresa  (Keweenaw)  Bay,  Mich.,  took 
over  a  month  uml  a  half.  The  poor  missionary  had  to 
endure  incredible  hardships  on  the  way.  He  was  obliged 
to  paddle  all  day  and  to  carry  very  heavy  packs  on  his 


FATHER   MENABD. 


17 


er 


.ft 


P^^ 


shoulders  at  the  numerous  portages  on  the  Ottawa  River. 
They  did  not  even  allow  him  time  to  say  his  office,  and 
threw  his  breviary  into  the  water,  imagining  perhaps  that 
the  mysterious  procedure  of  passing  the  eyes  over  curiously 
dotted  paper  was  a  mighty  charm  for  their  destruction. 
Luckily  he  found  another  breviary  stowed  away  in  one  of 
his  packages.  Starvation  was  his  daily  companion.  He 
writes : 

"But  the  worst  was  to  come.  Having  entered  Lake 
Superior  after  such  hardships,  there,  in  place  of  finding 
the  promised  rest  and  provisions,  our  canoe  was  smashed 
by  a  falling  tree,  and  that  so  completely,  that  no  hope  of 
repairing  it  was  left.  Everyone  abandoned  us  and  we 
were  left — three  Indians  and  myself — without  food  and 
canoe.  In  that  state  we  remained  six  days,  living  on  filthy 
offal,  which,  to  keep  off  starvation,  we  had  to  scratch  up 
with  our  finger-nails  around  an  old  abandoned  lodge.  To 
make  soup,  we  pounded  the  bones  that  lay  about.  We 
picked  up  earth  saturated  with  the  blood  of  animals  that 
had  been  killed  there ;  in  a  word,  we  made  food  of  every- 
thing. One  of  us  was  continually  on  the  lookout  at  the 
shore  to  implore  the  mercy  of  those  that  passed  by,  and  we 
wrested  from  them  a  few  slices  of  dried  meat,  which  saved 
us  from  death.  At  last  some,  more  compassionate,  took 
us  u])  and  brought  us  to  our  rallying  point,  destined  for 


our  wintering. 


This  is  a  larffe  bav  on  the  south  shore  of 


lis 


Lake  Superior  (Keweenaw  Bay),  where  I  arrived  on  St. 
Theresa's  day  (Oct.  1.5th,  1660),  and  here  I  had  the  con- 
solation of  saying  Mass,  -which  repaid  me  bountifully  for 
ail  my  past  hardships.  Here  also  I  opened  a  temporary 
church  of  Christian  Indians,  occasional  visitors  from  the 
neighborhood  of  our  French  settlements  (on  the  St.  Law- 
rence), and  of  such  others  as  the  mercy  of  God  has 
gathered  in  from  this  place." 

In  all  probability  Father  Menard's  mission  was  located 
at  Old  Village  Point,  or  Pikwakwewaming,  about  seven 


18 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


i  7 
i    I 


I' 


i 


miles  north  of  the  present  town,  L'Anse,  Mich.  He  bap- 
tized some  fifty  adults  and  many  children  during  the  nine 
months  he  resided  there. 

His  labors  amongst  the  hardened,  polygamous  Indians 
at  Keweenaw  Bay  were  attended  with  little  fruit.  They 
were  not  yet  ripe  for  the  Gospel,  as  in  the  days  of  Baraga, 
who  labored  ten  years  and  converted  nearly  all  the  people 
there.  Menard,  hearing  finally  of  a  band  of  Hurons, 
many  of  whom  were  Christians  and  who  resided  some- 
where at  the  headwaters  of  Black  River  (Wis.),  deter- 
mined to  seek  them.  In  the  spring  of  1661  he  employed 
three  of  his  French  companions  to  visit  the  Huron  settle- 
ment and  acquaint  them  with  his  design.  They  found  the 
Hurons  in  a  starving  condition.  Upon  their  return  they 
tried  to  dissuade  Menard  from  his  intended  voyage,  repre- 
senting to  him  that  he  would  likely  perish  on  the  way  or 
die  of  starvation  when  there;  but  all  in  vain. 

"God  calls  me,"  said- he;  "I  must  go  there,  should  it 
even  cost  my  life.  St.  Francis  Xavier,  who  seemed  so 
necessary  to  the  world  for  the  conversion  of  souls,  died 
well  in  trying  to  enter  China.  And  I,  who  am  good  for 
nothing,  should  I,  for  fear  of  dying  on  the  way,  refuse  to 
obey  the  voice  of  my  God,  who  calls  me  to  the  succor  of 
poor  Christians  and  catechumens  deprived  of  a  pastor  so 
long  a  time?  No,  no;  I  do  not  want  to  let  souls  perish 
under  pretext  of  preserving  the  bodily  life  of  a  puny  man, 
such  as  i  am.  What !  must  God  be  served  and  our  neigh- 
bor helped  only  then  when  there  is  nothing  to  suffer  and  no 
risk  of  one's  life  ?  This  is  the  most  beautiful  occasion  to 
show  to  angels  and  men  that  I  love  my  Creator  more  than 
the  life  I  have  from  Him,  and  would  you  wish  me  to  let  it 
escape  ?  Would  we  ever  have  been  redeemed  had  not  our 
dear  Master  preferred  to  sacrifice  His  life  in  obedience  to 
His  Father  for  our  salvation  ?" 

So  the  resolution  was  taken  to  go  and  seek  those  poor, 
starving  Hurons.     A  Frenchman  accompanied  the  Father. 


■m!' 


FATHER    MENARD. 


10 


All  the  provisions  they  had  was  a  hag  of  dried  sturgeon  and 
some  smoked  meat.  His  last  adieu  to  the  seven  French- 
men who  had  come  up  with  him  from  Three  Rivers,  and 
whom  he  now  was  leaving,  was  in  these  prophetic  words : 
"Adieu,  my  dear  children.  I  bid  you  the  great  adieu  for 
this  world,  for  you  will  not  see  me  again.  I  pray  the 
divine  Goodness  that  we  may  be  reunited  in  heaven." 

So  Menard  set  out  on  his  last  journey  the  13th  of  July, 
16C1,  nine  months  after  arriving  at  Keweenaw  Bay.  He 
and  his  French  companion  stopped  fifteen  days  near  a 
certain  lake — most  probably  Lac  Vieux  Desert — expecting 
the  Huron  guides,  who  were  to  conduct  him  to  their  vil- 
lage. As  provisions  were  failing,  they  determined  to  push 
on,  having  found  a  small  birch  canoe  in  the  brush. 
Finally,  while  going  down  river — most  probably  the  Wis- 
consin— the  Father  got  lost  whilst  making  a  portage  about 
two  days'  journey  from  the  Huron  village,  But  whether 
he  perished  from  starvation  or  by  the  hand  of  some  roving 
Indian,  will  never  be  known  with  certainty. 

It  is  highly  probable  that  Father  Menard  was  the  first 
priest  that  ever  said  Mass  on  Wisconsin  soil,  between  the- 
1st  and  10th  of  August,  1661. 


r. 


v^- 


CHAPTER    IV. 


I  ^ 

I 


I 


1  I. 


11! 


nil 

!  ! 


FATHER    ALLOUEZ;    HIS    APOSTOLIC    LABORS    IN    THE    LAKE 
SUPERIOR    REGION    AND    OTHER    PARTS    OF    WISCONSIN. 

The  pioneer  missionary  of  Wisconsin  was  Claude 
Allouez,  S.  J.  He  labored  longer  on  the  Indian  missions 
of  that  state  than  any  other  of  his  illustrious  order;  that 
is  to  say,  for  almost  a  quarter  of  a  century.  As  he  labored 
amongst  the  same  class  of  i>eople  on  the  shores  of  Chequa- 
megon  Bay,  that  Father  Baraga  did  a  century  and  a  half 
later,  a  brief  notice  of  his  labors  and  trials  will  not  be  out 
of  place  here. 

Father  Allouez  left  Three  Rivers,  Canada,  on  the  8th 
of  August,  in  the  year  1665,  in  company  with  six  French- 
men and  about  four  hundred  Indians  of  different  tribes, 
who  had  come  to  traffic  with  the  French  at  Three  Rivers 
and  Quebec,  and  who  were  then  returning  to  their  country. 
After  a  long  and  difficult  voyage  of  almost  two  months  in 
a  poor  birch  canoe,  he  arrived  at  "Chagaouamigong" 
(Chequamegon  Bay)  on  the  first  of  October,  1665.  On 
the  way,  the  poor  Father  suffered  much  from  the  brutality 
of  his  Indian  traveling  companions.  Their  head  men, 
especially  their  medicine-men,  did  all  in  their  power  to 
prevent  his  coming  to  their  country;  they  insulted  and 
ridiculed  him  on  all  occasions.  Hunger  and  misery  of 
e^'-ery  kind  was  his  daily  lot.  Speaking  of  these  hardships 
he  says : 

"When,  in  addition  to  these  hardships,  hunger  comes, 
it  is  a  very  severe  suffering,  which  soon  taught  me  to  take 


FATHER  ALLOUEZ. 


21 


liking  to  most  hitter  roots  and  rotten  meat.  It  pleased 
God  to  make  me  endure  the  greatest  hunger  on  Fridays, 
for  which  I  most  gladly  thank  Him.  I  had  to  accustom 
myself  to  eat  a  certain  moss,  which  grows  on  rocks.  It  is 
a  kind  of  leaf  in  the  shape  of  a  shell,  which  is  always 
covered  with  caterpillars  and  spiders.  When  boiled,  it 
makes  an  insipid,  black,  stickey  broth,  which  serves  rather 
to  keep  death  away  than  to  impart  life. 

"On  a  certain  morning  a  deer  was  found,  dead  since 
four  or  five  days.  It  was  a  lucky  acquisition  for  poor 
famished  beings.  I  was  offered  some,  and  although  the 
bad  smell  hindered  some  of  them  from  eating  it,  hunger 
made  me  take  my  share.  But  I  had,  in  consequence,  an 
offensive  odor  in  my  mouth  until  the  next  day." 

Speaking  of  the  location  of  his  mission  at  the  head  of 
Chequamegon  Bay,  he  says : 

"On  the  first  day  of  October,  1665,  we  arrived  at 
Chagaouamigong,  for  which  place  we  had  sighed  so  long. 
It  is  a  beautiful  bay,  at  the  head  of  which  is  situated  the 
large  village  of  the  Indians,  who  there  cultivate  fields  of 
Indian  corn  and  do  not  lead  a  wandering  life.  There  are 
at  this  place  men  bearing  arms  and  numbering  about  eight 
hundred ;  but  these  are  gathered  together  from  seven  differ- 
ent tribes,  and  live  in  peaceable  community.  This  great 
number  of  people  induced  us  to  prefer  this  place  to  all 
others  for  our  ordinarv  abode,  in  order  to  attend  more 
conveniently  to  the  instruction  of  these  heathens,  to  put 
up  a  chapel  there  and  commence  the  functions  of  Chris- 
tiaiiity. 

His  first  baptism  was  that  of  a  Pottawatami  child, 
whom  he  named  Francis,  having  likely  baptized  him  on 
St.  Francis  day,  October  the  4th.  The  child  died  after 
two  days,  "the  first  fruit  of  this  mission." 

At  the  head  of  the  bay  were  two  large  villages,  the  one 
inhabited  by  Hurons,  and  the  other  by  Ottawas.  The 
mission  was  called,  "The  Mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost."     It 


; 


In 


1   .!( 


Ill 


I'    I  } 
f         .1 


I      ■    >' 


11  ; 
il'l 


■I''       A.  ' 


22 


BT.  REV.   FBBDEBIO   BARAGA. 


was  located  between  those  two  villages.  There  were,  more- 
over, scattering  villages  and  hamlets  along  the  western 
shore  of  the  bay,  inhabited  by  bands  of  Illinois,  Pottawat- 
amies,  Sacs,  Foxes  and  other  tribes.  These  poor  people 
had  been  driven  westward  by  the  fierce  Iroquois  about  the 
middle  of  the  seventeenth  century.  They  lived  in  peace 
and  security  at  this  western  end  of  Lake  Superior  for  about 
twenty  years.  But  having  foolishly  made  war  on  the  pow- 
erful Sioux,  and  been  defeated,  they  were  obliged  to  leave 
in  1670-'71.  Some  of  them  went  to  live  on  Manitoulin 
Island,  in  Lake  Huii^n ;  others  at  Mackinac ;  others  again 
at  the  head  and  on  the  shores  of  Green  Bay. 

During;  the  three  and  a  half  vears  that  Father  Allouez 
spent  with  them  at  Chequamegon  Bay,  he  baptized  about 
five  hundred  adults  and  children.  In  the  spring  of  1669 
he  went  to  Quebec  and  was  succeeded  by  Father  James 
Marquette,  who  arrived  at  the  same  bay  on  the  13th  of 
September,  1669.  This  pious  missionary,  the  famed  dis- 
coverer of  the  Mississippi,  labored  there,  but  not  with 
great  success  on  account  of  the  war  excitement,  until  the 
spring  of  1671,  when  the  war  between  the  Sioux  in  Minne- 
sota, and  the  Hurons,  Ottawas  and  other  tribes  in  Wiscon- 
sin, broke  up  the  mission.  From  the  above-mentioned 
date  till  1835  there  is  no  account  of  any  Catholic  mission- 
ary laboring  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Superior.  In  1835, 
Father  Baraga  founded  the  mission  of  St.  Joseph  on  La 
Pointe  Island,  and  so  revived,  it  may  be  said,  the  ancient 
mission  of  Allouez  and  Marquette  at  the  head  of  Chequa- 
megon Bay. 

A-fter  Father  AUouez's  return  from  Quebec  in  1669, 
he  went  to  Green  Bay  to  found  at  the  head  of  that  bay  a 
new  mission.  He  departed  with  two  Indians  in  a  birch 
canoe  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  on  the  3d  of  IN'ovember,  and 
after  suffering  many  hardships  and  much  cold,  he  arrived 
at  the  head  of  Green  Bay  on  the  2d  of  December,  1669. 
He  said  holy  Mass  on  December  the  3d,  feast  of  St.  Fran- 


FATHER   ALLOUEZ. 


23 


cis  Xavier,  with  all  possible  solemnity,  and  dedicated  to 
that  great  saint  the  mission  he  was  establishing. 

This  indefatigable  missionary  may  be  justly  called  the 
ancient  Indian  Apostle  of  Wisconsin,  for  he  was  the 
founder  of  all  the  principal  missions  within  its  borders. 
He  founderd  St.  Michael's  Mission  among  the  Menom- 
inees,  that  of  St.  Mark  among  the  Foxes  on  the  Wolf 
River,  that  of  St.  James,  on  the  Upper  Fox,  amongst  the 
Illinois,  Miamies,  and  Kickapoos;  besides  other  stations 
on  the  eastern  shore  of  Green  Bay,  among  the  Winneba- 
goes,  Pottawatamis,  and  Sacs.  He  also  labored  with  great 
zeal  in  Illinois  and  died  a  holy  and  edifying  death  in  St. 
Joseph's  Mission,  Michigan,  about  the  year  1689. 


iFT 


I  111 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE  LABORS  OF  FATHER  MARQUETTlJ  AT  THE  MISSION  OF 
THE  HOLY  GHOST  ON  THE  SHORES  OF  CHEQUAMEGON 
(aSHLANd)    BAY   AND  AT   ST.    IGNACE^   MICH. 


I   '"i 
;  i'i 

\  li 


!i 


Ml! 

\ 


Father  Marquette,  who  had  been  laboring  for  about  a 
year  among  the  numerous  Indians  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  was 
sent  by  his  Superior,  in  1669,  to  the  Mission  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  to  continue  the  work  so  auspiciously  begun  by  his 
zealous  predecessor.  Father  Allouez.  He  arrived  at 
*'Chagaouamigong"  on  the  13th  of  September  of  the  above- 
named  year.  In  a  letter,  most  probably  written  from 
Sault  Ste.  Marie  in  the  spring  of  1670,  he  speaks  of  his 
labors  at  Chequamegon  Bay.     We  will  give  a  few  extracts : 

"Divine  Providence  having  destined  me  to  continue 
the  Mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  Father  Allouez  had 
begun,  and  where  he  baptized  the  headmen  of  the  Kiska- 
konk  tribe,  I  arrived  there  on  the  13th  of  September.  I 
went  to  visit  the  Indians,  who  were  living  in  clearings 
divided,  as  it  were,  into  five  villages.*  The  Hurons,  to 
the  number  of  from  four  to  five  hundred  souls,  are  nearly 
all  baptized,  and  still  preserve  a  little  Christianity.  Some 
of  the  principal  men,  assembled  in  council,  were  much 
pleased  at  first  to  see  me.  I  gave  them  to  understand, 
however,  that  I  did  not  as  yet  know  their  language  per- 

*The  location  of  these  five  Indian  villages  on  the  shores  of 
Chequamegon  Bay  may  have  been  as  follows:  1,  at  Fish  Creek;  2, 
at  Nash ;  3,  at  Van  der  Venter's  Bay ;  4,  near  Pike's  Bay ;  5,  Bayfield. 


FATHBB  MARQUETTE. 


25 


fectly,  and  that  there  was  no  other  Father  to  come  here, 
partly  because  they  were  all  gone  to  the  Iroquois,  and 
partly  because  Father  Allouez,  who  understootl  them  per- 
fectly, did  not  wish  to  return  hero  for  this  winter  on 
account  of  their  not  showing  enough  attachment  to  relig- 
ion. They  admitted  that  they  well  deserved  punishment 
and  afterwards  during  the  winter  they  spoke  of  it  and 
resolved  to  do  better,  which  they  in  reality  have  shown  me 
by  their  conduct.         ........ 

"The  Outaouacs  (Ottawas)  are  remarkably  supersti- 
tious in  their  feasts  and  juggleries  and  seem  to  harden 
themselves  against  the  instructions  imparted  to  them. 
They  are,  however,  well  satisfied  to  have  their  children 
baptized.  God  has  this  winter  permitted  a  woman  to  die 
in  her  sins.  Her  sickness  had  been  concealed  from  me, 
and  I  heard  nothing  about  it,  except  by  a  report  circulated 
about  that  she  had  requested  a  very  bad  dance  to  be  per- 
formed for  her  cure.  I  immediately  went  into  a  wigwam, 
where  all  the  headmen  were  at  a  feast,  and  among  them 
some  Christian  Kiskakonk.  I  pointed  out  to  them  the 
wickedness  of  that  woman  and  of  the  medicine-man  (in 
getti:  g  up  such  an  immodest  dance).  I  instructed  them, 
speaking  to  all  present,  and  Go<l  willed  that  an  aged 
Outaouac  should  take  the  word,  saying  that  my  request 
should  be  granted,  no  matter  if  the  woman  were  to  die. 
An  aged  Christian  also  spoke,  telling  the  tribe  that  the 
debaucheries  of  the  young  people  ought  to  be  stopped,  and 
that  Christian  girls  should  never  be  allowed  to  be  present 
at  these  dances.  To  satisfy  the  woman,  the  danco  was 
changed  into  a  child's  play,  but  thi3  did  not  prevent  her 
from  dying  before  daybreak. 

"The  extreme  danger  in  which  a  young  man  la  /  sick 
induced  the  medicine-man  to  say  he  would  invoke  the  devil 
by  means  of  very  extraordinary  superstitious  perform- 
ances. The  Christians  made  no  invocation  whatever.  Only 
the  medicine-man  and  the  patient  did  so.     The  latter  was 


'  1 

,  'I 


26 


BT.  BBV.    FKBDERIO    BARAOA. 


i  '     !     1      I 


;  j   I 


It' 


t  :. 


I    f    i 


'Ill, 


^     ll^ 


i   • 


i 


<  . 


i 


ii 


)  '  if 


i  'i 


I 


iniulo  to  walk  over  hwgo  firos,  wliieli  had  been  lighted  in  all 
the  wigwaniH.  They  say  that  he  did  not  fend  the  heat  of 
those  fires,  although  his  body  had  been  anointed  with  oil 
for  live  or  six  days.  Men,  women,  and  children  ran  from 
wigwam  to  wigwam,  proposing,  as  an  enigma,  anything 
they  had  in  their  minds,  and  the  one  who  guessed  it  was 
vei'y  well  satisfied  to  receive  whatever  ho  was  looking  for. 
I  prevented  them  from  practicing  the  indecencies,  in  which 
they  are  in  the  habit  of  indulging  at  the  end  of  these  devil- 
tries. 1  think  they  will  not  return  to  them  again,  as  the 
sick  man  died  shortly  after. 

"The  Kiskakonk  tribe,  which  for  three  years  had 
refused  to  receive  the  Gospel  announced  to  them  by  Father 
Allouez,  finally  resolved  in  the  autiinm  of  the  year  1668 
to  obey  God.  This  resolution  was  taken  in  a  council  and 
made  known  to  the  Father,  who  was  obliged  to  winter  with 
them  for  the  fourth  time,  in  order  to  instruct  and  baptize 
them.  The  headmen  of  the  tribe  declare  themselves  Chris- 
tians, and  in  order  to  attend  to  them,  the  Father  (Allouez) 
having  gone  to  another  mission,  the  charge  of  this  one  was 
given  to  me,  which  charge  I  took  up  in  the  month  of 
September  of  the  year  1669. 

*'A11  the  Christians  were  in  the  fields  at  that  time, 
harvesting  their  Indian  corn.  They  listened  to  me  with 
pleasure,  when  I  told  them  that  I  had  come  to  La  Pointe 
merely  through  consideration  for  them  and  the  Ilurons; 
that  they  never  would  be  abandoned,  but  would  be  cher- 
ished above  all  other  tribes,  and  would  henceforth  form 
one  nation  with  the  French.  I  had  the  consolation  of  see- 
ing their  love  for  religion,  and  how  much  they  appreciated 
their  being  Christians.  I  baptized  the  newly-born  chil- 
dren and  visited  the  old  men,  all  of  whom  I  found  well 
disposed.  The  chief  had  allowed  a  dog  to  be  attached  to 
a  pole  near  his  wigwam,  which  is  a  kind  of  sacrifice  to  the 
sun.  I  told  him  that  it  was  not  right  and  he  immediately 
took  it  down  himself. 


FATHER   MARQUETTE. 


27 


of 


to 
the 


"A  Mi'k  man,  who  hud  hcen  iustnicted  but  not  yet  bap- 
tized, begged  nie  to  grant  him  this  grace,  or  to  stay  near 
him,  because  he  did  not  wish  to  employ  the  medicino-num 
to  get  cured,  and  feared  the  iirc  of  hell.  I  i)repared  bim 
for  Baptism.  I  was  often  in  his  wigwam  and  the  joy  my 
visit  caused  bim  partly  restored  bim  to  healtli.  He 
thanked  me  for  the  caro  I  had  taken  of  bim  and  shortly 
after,  saying  I  had  restored  bim  to  life,  he  made  me  a 
present  of  a  slave,  who  bad  been  brought  to  him  from  the 
Illinois  two  or  three  months  before. 

"In  the  evening,  being  in  the  wigwam  of  a  Christian, 
where  I  used  to  sleep,  I  made  bim  say  some  prayers  to  the 
guardian  angel,  and  related  some  anecdotes  to  nuike  him 
understand  the  assistance  the  angels  give  us,  especially 
when  in  danger  o<"  offending  God.  He  told  me  that  now 
he  knew  the  invisible  hand  that  struck  bim,  when,  after  his 
Baptism,  he  was  on  the  ]u)int  of  committing  sin  with  a 
woman,  and  having  beard  a  voice  that  told  bim  to  remem- 
ber that  be  was  a  Christian,  ho  departed  without  commit- 
ting this  sin.  Afterwards  he  often  spoke  to  me  about  the 
devotion  to  the  guardian  angels  and  conversed  about  it  with 
other  Indians"         ........ 

These  few  extracts  from  IVEarquette's  letter  give  us  an 
insight  into  his  labors  at  "La  Pointe  du  Saint  Esprit,"  the 
name  given  by  the  ancient  missionaries  to  Bayfield  penin- 
sula. In  the  spring  of  1671  the  mission  broke  up.  Some 
of  the  poor  Indians  immigrated  to  St.  Ignace,  Mich.,  on 
the  mainland,  about  four  miles  from  Mackinac  Island,  and 
thither  Marquette  followed  them.  The  "Relation"  of 
1672,  speaking  of  this  new  mission,  says : 

"Father  Marquette,  who  followed  them  from  La  Pointe 
du  Saint  Esprit,  still  has  charge  of  them.  But  he  has  not 
given  us  any  particular  memoirs  of  what  took  place  in  this 
mission  (St.  Ignace).  All  that  can  be  said  of  it  is  that 
this  tribe  (Huron)  had  been  formerly  brought  up  in  the 
Christian  religion  prior  to  the  destruction  of  the  Huron 


mi 


28 


BT.  BEV.  FBBDBBIO  BABAOA. 


nation,  and  that  tnose  who  have  persevered  in  the  faith  are 
at  present  very  fervent.  They  fill  the  chapel  every  day — 
yes,  even  often  during  the  day  do  they  visit  it.  They  sing 
the  piraises  of  God  with  a  devotion,  which  has  been  com- 
municated in  a  great  measure  to  the  French,  who  have 
witnessed  it.  Adults  have  been  baptized  and  old  men  set 
a  good  example  to  the  children  to  go  to  prayers  diligently. 
In  a  word,  they  practice  all  the  exercises  of  piety  that  can 
be  expected  of  Christians  converted  over  twenty  years  ago, 
although  for  the  greatest  part  of  that  time  they  were  with- 
out a  church  and  pastor,  having  no  other  teacher  than  the 
Holy  Ghost." 


I:  i!  'I 


1 


■■  •^fll 


th  are 
lay— 
rsing 
coin- 
have 
m  set 
ently. 
it  can 
sago, 
with- 
n  the 


-•1 


it        p. 


i  I  '     f 


i'li 


'  H 

>.■ 

'  i  ■ 

iJ!.' 

1, 

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i; 

1' 

.  *' 

X. 

„ii 

CHAPTER    VI. 

FATHER  MARQUETTE  DISCOVERS  THE  MISSISSIPPI;  ESTAB- 
LISHES THE  MISSION  OF  THE  IMMACULATE  CONCEP- 
TION;  HIS   EDIFYING   DEATH. 


m 


In  1672  Louis  do  Buade,  Comte  de  Frontenac,  suc- 
ceeded M.  de  Courcelles  as  governor  of  Canada.  As  soon 
as  he  had  arrived,  M.  Talon,  the  intend^nt,  laid  'oefore  him 
the  plan  of  exploring  the  Mississippi.  For  this  great 
undertaking  Sieur  Jollyet  and  Father  Marquette  were 
chosen.  On  the  8th  of  December,  1672,  feast  of  the 
Immaculate  Conception,  Jollyet  arrived  at  St.  Ignace  and 
told  Father  Marquette  the  joyful  news  of  their  appoint- 
ment to  visit  and  explore  the  Mississippi.  Duj'ing  the 
winter  they  perfected  their  plans  for  the  undertaking,  and 
on  the  17th  of  May,  1673,  started  from  St.  Ignace,  in  com- 
pany with  five  Frenchmen,  who  had  volunteered  to  accom- 
pany them  on  this  glorious  though  hazardous  journey. 

At  the  mouth  of  the  Menominee  River,  where  it 
empties  into  Green  Bay,  was  a  settlement  of  Menominees, 
several  of  whom  were  Christians.  They  tried  very  hard 
to  dissuade  Marquette  and  his  companions  from  the 
intended  exploration.  They  told  him  he  would  meet  with 
savage  tribes,  who  showed  no  mercy  to  strangers ;  that  war 
had  broken  out  between  the  tribes  along  the  proposed 
route ;  that  the  great  river  was  very  dangerous  and  full  of 
horrible  monsters,  which  devoured  both  men  and  boat ; 
that  a  demon  or  manitou  obstructed  the  passage  and 
drowned  all  who  dared  to  come  near,  and  that  the  heat 


mUy.  \ 

m 
I 

■;■>' 


i 


11 


!  ^ili'; 


•    * 


.;   ;  <!' 


'!;:■ 


;:  '1 


I  :,K^ 


]v    1^   !  fp 


i  (S'i 


1  I 


30 


BT.  BEY.   FBEDBBIC  BABAOA. 


was  insupportable.  Father  Marquette,  however,  made 
light  of  all  their  objections  and  boldly  pushed  forward. 
On  the  17th  of  June,  1673,  their  canoes  glided  into  the 
Mississippi.  For  upwards  of  a  hundred  leagues  they  met 
not  a  single  Inunan  being  on  the  Wisconsin  and  Missis- 
sippi. Finally,  on  the  25th  of  June,  they  discovered  a 
trail  leading  from  the  river  to  an  Indian  village.  This 
they  followed  in  silence  and  prayer.  It  led  them  to  a 
settlement  of  Peoria  (Illinois)  Indians  on  the  banks  of 
Des  Moines  River,  consisting  of  three  villages  situated  at 
a  short  distance  from  one  another. 

They  were  offered  the  calumet,  or  pipe  of  peace,  and 
one  of  their  chiefs  thus  addressed  them:  "How  beauti- 
ful, 0  Frenchman,  is  the  sun,  when  thou  comest  to  visit 
us !  All  our  village  waits  thee  and  thou  shalt  enter  all 
our  cabins  in  peace."  He  then  conducted  them  into  his 
wigwam,  where  a  great  crowd,  as  Marquette  graphically 
descvibes  it,  devoured  them  with  their  eyes.  Soon  an 
invitation  came  from  the  head  chief  of  the  tribe  to  visit 
his  village,  as  he  desired  to  hold  a  council  with  them. 
On  the  way  thither  they  were  accompanied  by  the  whole 
village. 

When  they  arrived  at  the  village  of  the  great  chief, 
they  saw  him  standing  in  front  of  his  cabin  in  the  midst 
of  two  old  men,  with  their  calumets  turned  towards  the 
sun.  The  chief  bade  them  welcome  in  a  neat  little  speech 
and  offered  them  his  pipe  to  smoke.  Father  Marquette 
then  spoke,  telling  them  the  object  of  his  visit.  He  told 
them  that  he  and  his  party  were  traveling  in  peace  to  visit 
the  nations  that  lived  along  the  great  river;  that  he  was 
sent  on  the  part  of  God  to  enlighten  them  with  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  true  God,  of  whom  they  had  been  so  long  ignor- 
ant ;  that  the  great  chief  of  the  French  had  subdued  the 
Iroquois  and  made  peace  everywhere,  and  finally  he 
requested  them  to  give  him  all  the  information  they  could 


FATHEB  MARQUETTE. 


31 


about  the  sea  and  the  nations,  whom  they  would  have  to 
i:)ass  to  get  there. 

The  chief  then  arose  and  laying  his  hand  on  the  head 
of  a  little  slave,  whom  he  meant  to  give  them  as  a  present, 
he  sjDoke  as  follows : 

"I  thank  thee,  Black-robe,  and  thee,  Frenchman," — 
addressing  M.  Jollyet, — "for  having  taken  so  much 
trouble  to  come  and  visit  us.  Never  was  the  earth  so 
beautiful  nor  the  sun  so  bright  as  to-day.  Xever  was  our 
river  so  calm  nor  so  free  from  rocks,  which  your  canoes 
have  removed  in  passing  bj^;  never  had  our  tobacco  so 
good  a  flavor,  nor  did  our  corn  appear  so  flourishing  as 
we  now  see  it.  Behold,  here  is  my  son,  whom  I  give  to 
thee,  that  thou  mayest  know  my  heart.  I  implore  thee 
to  have  pity  on  me  and  all  my  people.  Thou  knowest  the 
Great  Spirit  who  made  us  all ;  thou  speakest  to  Him  and 
hearest  His  word.  Ask  Him  to  grant  me  life  and  health, 
and  do  thou  come  and  live  with  us  to  make  us  know  him."* 

The  council  was  followed  by  a  great  banquet,  consist- 
ing of  four  dishes.  The  first  consisted  of  a  large  wooden 
plate  of  sagamity ;  that  is,  corn  meal  boiled  in  water  and 
seasoned  with  fat.  The  master  of  ceremonies  put  a  spoon- 
ful of  it  into  the  Father's  mouth,  as  one  would  feed  a  little 
child ;  he  did  the  same  to  Jollyet.  The  second  was  a  plate 
of  fish.  The  master  of  ceremonies  took  some  choice 
pieces,  removing  the  bones,  blew  them  to  cool  them,  and 
then  put  some  into  their  mouths.  The  third  dish  con- 
sisted of  a  large  dog,  which  had  been  hastily  killed  and 
prepared  for  the  occasion,  but  learning  that  their  guests 
did  not  relish  dog  meat,  it  was  removed.  The  fourth  was 
buifah  meat,  of  which  he  put  the  fattest  pieces  into  their 


Ml 


*We  doubt  whether  a  white  orator  could  have  made  a  more 
touching,  simple,  and  beautiful  extempore  address  than  this  child  of 
the  prairies  on  such  an  occasion.  Many  Indian  speeches  are  models 
of  oratory,  showing  that  the  gift  of  true  eloquence  is  not  confined  to 
civilized  nations. 


I'  I  !  I 


r  .1 


If;     r   !  if 


k  I  ii;i  i  i 

^     !  '|i  !  i 

?■  1  .1,1  :  I 

I  e  i  ■ 

1    I  i  ■ 


'  Si; 


I  1 


1  ; 


I  1 


82 


BT.  BEY.   FBBDEBIO  BABAQA. 


mouths.     They  left  these  kindhearted  Indians  the  next 
day  and  continued  their  voyage  down  the  Mississippi. 

As  they  were  gently  floating  down  the  river  in  their 
canoes,  they  suddenly  heheld  some  Indians  armed  with 
guns.  The  Father  held  up  the  calumet,  the  pipe  of  peace, 
which  he  had  received  at  the  Illinois  village,  whilst  his 
companions  prepared  to  defend  themselves.  He  spoke  to 
the  Indians  in  Huron,  but  they  did  not  answer.  Their 
silence  was  interpreted  at  first  as  a  sign  of  hostility.  It 
seemed,  however,  these  Indians  were  as  much  frightened 
as  their  French  visitors.  Finally  the  latter  were  given  to 
understand  that  they  should  land  and  eat  with  the  Indians, 
which  they  did.  They  were  regaled  with  buffalo-meat, 
bear-oil,  and  plums  of  an  excellent  flavor.  These  Indians 
had  guns,  axes,  hoes,  knives,  beads  and  glass  bottles,  in 
which  they  carried  thtir  gun-powder.  They  informed 
Marquette  that  they  obtained  those  articles  from  Europ- 
eans, living  eastward  from  there;  that  those  people  had 
rosaries  and  images  and  played  musical  instruments,  and 
some  of  them  were  clothed  like  him.  Father  Marquette 
instructed  them  somewhat  and  gave  them  some  medals. 

At  about  33  degrees  of  latitude  they  saw^  a  village  near 
the  river,  called  Mitchigamea.  Perceiving  the  strangerr, 
the  Indians  quickly  prepared  to  fight.  They  were  armed 
with  bows  and  arrows,  tomahawks  and  war-clubs.  Tbev 
jumped  into  their  large  wooden  canoes.  Some  of  them 
stationed  themselves  at  the  river  below,  whilst  others  took 
position  above  the  party,  so  as  to  cut  off  their  retreat. 
Those  on  the  bank  ran  back  and  forward,  shouting  and 
animating  one  another  to  fight.  Some  young  men  even 
jumped  into  the  river  to  seize  Father  Marquette's  canoe, 
but  the  current  being  too  strong,  they  were  obliged  to  swim 
back  to  the  shore.  One  of  them  threw  his  w^ar-club  at  the 
party,  without,  however,  hitting  any  one.  In  this  great 
danger  the  Father  most  fervently  invoked  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Immaculate,  while  showing  continually  the  calu- 


FATHER   MARQUETTE. 


33 


iin 


met.  At  lengtii  it  was  seen  by  some  of  the  old  men,  who 
then  restrained  the  young.  Two  of  the  headmen  came 
into  his  canoe,  throwing  down  the  bows  at  his  feet  to  give 
him  to  imderstand  that  no  harm  would  be  done  to  him  and 
his  party.  They  all  disembarked,  not,  however,  without 
some  feeling  of  fear  on  the  part  of  the  Father.  He  spoke 
to  them  by  signs,  as  they  did  not  understand  any  one  of  the 
six  Indian  languages  he  knew.  Finally  an  old  man  was 
found  v>dio  could  speak  a  little  Illinois.  The  Father  told 
them  that  he  was  on  his  way  to  the  sea,  and  he  gave  them 
some  instruction  on  God  and  the  affairs  of  their  salvation. 
All  the  answer  he  received  was  that  eight  or  ten  leagues 
further  down  the  river  he  would  find  a  large  village  called 
Akamsca,  where  he  would  get  all  the  information  he 
desired. 

Early  next  morning  they  embarked,  accompanied  by 
an  interpreter  and  ten  Indians  in  a  canoe,  who  rowed  a 
little  ahead.  Having  arrived  within  half  a  league  of 
Akamsea,  which  was  located  opposite  the  mouth  of  the 
Arkansas  River,  they  saw  two  canoes  coming  to  meet  them. 
The  headman  stood  up  in  his  canoe  and  showed  them  the 
calumet.  He  then  sang  an  agreeable  song,  offered  them 
the  pipe  of  peace  to  smoke,  and  served  them  with  sagamity 
and  corn-bread,  of  which  they  partook  a  little.  The  peo- 
ple in  the  village  in  the  meanwhile  had  prepared  a  suitable 
place  under  the  scaffold  of  the  chief  warrior.  They 
spread  out  fine  mats  made  of  rushes,  on  which  the  Father 
and  his  companions  were  invited  to  sit.  Around  them 
sat  the  chiefs  of  the  tribe,  further  back  the  warriors,  and 
behind  them  the  rest  of  the  people. 

The  Indians  told  Marquette  that  they  were  ten  days' 
journey  from  the  sea  (Gulf  of  Mexico),  but  the  Father 
thought  thev  could  have  made  it  in  five.  Thev  said  tliev 
were  not  acquainted  with  the  tribes  that  dwelt  there, 
because  their  enemies  hindered  them  from  having  inter- 
course with  the  Europeans  there ;  that  the  axes,  knives  and 


!■ 


it, 
i 


:»',: 

'j 

■'*', : 

i. 

■r '  ' 

'* 

V 

i. 

■v 

■V 

}■ 

^ 

■:    ■ 


i  iM  ! 


Ii;!  if 


S  ;  4: 


f 


^^^ 


:1^  '  |5t  ! 


i  'A 


'Si 


Bi 


RT.  BEV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


beads  they  saw  had  been  sold  to  them  by  tribes  living 
towards  the  east,  and  partly  by  a  village  of  Illinois  four 
days'  journey  towards  the  west;  that  the  Indians  whom 
they  had  seen  with  guns,  were  their  enemies,  who  cut  them 
off  from  all  intercourse  and  trade  with  the  Europeans ; 
finally  that  it  would  be  dangerous  to  go  any  further, 
because  their  enemies  continually  sent  out  war-parties  on 
the  river,  whom  they  could  not  encounter,  armed  with  guns 
as  they  were  and  accustomed  to  wai,  without  exposing 
themselves  to  great  danger. 

Fathei  ]\riU'quette  and  Jollyet  deliberated  umongst 
themselves  whether  they  had  better  push  on  further  or 
return  home.  Knowing*  they  were  within  a  few  davs' 
journey  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  being  convinced  that 
the  Mississippi  emptied  into  said  gulf  and  not  towards 
Virginia  nor  California,  the  main  object  of  their  explor- 
ation had  been  reali'^ed.  Having  therefore  rested  them- 
selves a  day  at  the  village  of  Akamsea,  they  left  on  the 
iTth  of  July,  having  spent  im  entire  month  in  exploring 
the  Mississippi.  They  returned  home  by  way  of  the 
Illinois  River,  and  coasting  along  the  western  shore  of 
Lake  Michigan,  arrived  safely  at  the  Mission  of  St. 
Francis  Xavier,  near  the  present  city  of  Depere,  Wis., 
towards  the  end  of  September.  They  had  made  in  their 
two  small  birch-canoes  a  journey  of  over  2,700  miles. 

Father  Marquette  had  suffered  much  on  his  voyage 
down  the  Mississippi  in  consjquence  of  which  he  w:  * 
attacked  with  the  dysentery  He  remained  at  St.  Francis 
Xavier  Mission  for  a  wnole  year.  Finally,  to  his  great 
joy,  he  was  ordered  by  his  Superior  to  proceed  to  the 
country  of  the  Illinois  to  establish  there  the  Missioii  o±  the 
Immaculate  Conception.  He  left  on  the  25th  of  October, 
1674,  and  after  traveling  for  upwards  of  a  month  by  way 
of  Green  Bay,  Sturgeon  Bay,  where  they  made  a  portage 
of  three  miles  to  1  uke  Michigan,  and  the  western  shore  of 
the  last  named  lake,  he  and  his  two  faithful  companions 


iii 


•^*^^ 


FATHER  MARQUETTE. 


86 


tlie 

of 

St. 

leir 


'age 


the 

:  the 

[>ber, 

way 

■i-age 


arrived  at  the  Chicago  Iliver.  They  wintered  at  the  port- 
age between  Chi  mgo  and  Illinois  Kiver.  Marquette  had 
a  new  attack  of  hia  old  ailment,  which  never  left  him 
entirely  after  that,  though  he  was  able  to  say  Mass  every 
day.  He  had  all  along  a  presentiment  of  his  death,  for 
he  told  his  companions  plainly  that  he  would  die  of  his 
ailment,  and  on  that  very  journey.  lie  made  the  si:)irit- 
ual  retreat  of  St.  Ignatius  with  great  devotion  and  consol- 
ation, said  Mass  every  day,  confessed  and  communicated 
his  two  companions  twice  a  week,  and  spent  most  of  his 
time  in  prayer.  He  made  with  them  a  Novena  in  honor 
of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Immaculate  that  she  might  obtain 
for  him  the  grace  not  to  die  till  he  had  founded  his 
intended  mission.     His  prayer  was  heard. 

On  the  29tli  of  March,  1675,  he  departed  from  his 
Avinter  encampment  and  traveled  down  the  Illinois  River 
for  eleven  days  amidst  great  hardships.  Finally,  on  the 
8th  of  April  he  arrived  at  the  village  of  the  Kaskaskias,. 
where  he  was  received  as  an  angel  from  heaven.  He  went 
from  cabin  to  cabin  to  instruct  the  people.  On  Holy 
Thursday  he  said  holy  Mass  in  the  open  air  in  the  presence 
of  an  immense  concourse  of  Indians,  having  first  preached 
to  them  a  most  touching  sermon  on  the  death  of  Jesus; 
Christ  on  the  cross  for  the  redemption  of  man.  On  Easter 
Sunday  another  great  meeting  was  held,  at  which  he  said 
Mass  again  and  preached  with  fiery  zeal.  The  good 
people  listened  to  him  with  great  joy  and  approbation. 
Thus  Father  Marquette  v^as  the  first  priest  that  offered 
up  the  holy  Sacrifice  on  the  soil  of  Illinois  in  1674-5. 
His  woik  was  done  and  he  prepared  to  return  in  order  to 
die,  if  possible,  amongst  his  brethren  at  St.  Ignace. 

We  shall  give  the  particulars  of  his  holy  death  in  the 
words  of  the  "Relations" : 

"After  the  Illinois  had  taken  leave  of  the  Father,  he 
continued  his  voyage  and  soon  after  reached  the  Illinois 
Lake  (Lake  Michigan),  on  which  he  had  nearly  a  hundred 


I 


1 


36 


RT.  BEY.   FBBDEBIO  BARAOA. 


' '.  ;  ( 


t    I 


:  %  1 


111!] 


leagues  to  make  by  an  unknown  route,  because  he  was 
obliged  to  take  the  eastern  side  of  the  lake,  having  gone 
thither  by  the  western.  His  strength,  however,  failed  so 
much  that  his  men  despaired  of  being  able  to  bring  him 
alive  to  the  end  of  their  journey ;  for,  in  fact,  he  became 
so  weak  and  exhausted  that  he  could  no  longer  help  him- 
self, nor  even  stir,  and  had  to  be  handled  and  carried  like 
a  child. 

"He,  nevertheless,  maintained  in  this  state  an  admir- 
able equanimity,  joy,  and  gentleness,  consoling  his  beloved 
companions  and  exhorting  them  to  suffer  courageously  all 
the  hardships  of  the  way,  assuring  them,  moreover,  that 
our  Lord  would  not  forsake  them  when  he  would  be  gone. 
During  his  navigation  he  began  to  prepare  more  partic- 
ularly for  death,  passing  his  time  in  colloquies  with  our 
Lord,  His  holy  Mother,  His  angel  guardian  and  all 
heaven.  He  was  often  heard  pronouncing  these  words: 
'I  believe  that  my  Redeemer  liveth,'  or  'Mary,  mother  of 
grace,  mother  of  God,  remember  me!'  Besides  a  spirit- 
ual reading  made  for  him  every  day,  he,  towards  the  end, 
asked  them  to  read  to  him  his  meditation  on  the  prepara- 
tion for  death,  which  he  carried  about  him.  He  recited 
his  breviary  every  day,  and  although  he  was  so  low  that 
both  sight  and  strength  had  greatly  failed,  he  did  not  omit 
it  till  the  last  day  of  his  life,  when  his  companions  induced 
him  to  cease,  as  it  was  shortening  his  days. 

"A  week  before  his  death  he  had  the  precaution  to  bless 
some  Holy  Water,  to  serve  him  during  the  rest  of  his  ill- 
ness, in  his  agony,  and  at  his  burial,  and  he  instructed  his 
companions  how  to  use  it.  On  the  eve  of  his  death,  which 
was  a  Friday,  he  told  them,  all  radiant  with  joy,  that  it 
would  take  place  on  the  morrow.  During  the  whole  day 
he  conversed  with  them  about  the  manner  of  his  burial, 
the  way  in  which  he  should  be  laid  out,  the  place  to  be 
selected  for  his  interment.  He  told  them  how  to  arrange 
his  hands,  feet,  rnd  face,  and  directed  tliem  to  raise  a  cross 


FATHER   MARQUETTE. 


87 


over  his  grave,  lie  even  went  so  far  as  to  enjoin  them, 
only  three  hours  before  he  expired,  to  take  his  chapel-bell, 
as  soon  as  he  would  be  dead,  and  ring  it  while  they  carried 
him  to  the  grave.  Of  all  this  he  spoke  so  calmly  and  col- 
lectedly, that  yon  would  have  thought  he  spoke  of  the 
death  and  burial  of  another,  and  not  of  his  own. 

"Thus  did  ho  speak  with  them  as  they  sailed  along  the 
lake,  till  perceiving  the  mouth  of  a  river  with  an  eminence 
on  the  bank,  whicb  he  thought  suited  to  his  burial,  he  told 
them  it  was  the  place  of  his  last  repose.  They  wished, 
however,  to  pass  on,  as  tlie  weather  ixmnitted  and  the  day 
was  not  far  advanced.  But  God  raised  a  contrary  wind, 
Avhich  obliged  them  to  return  and  enter  the  river  pointed 
out  by  Father  Marquette.  They  then  carried  him-  ashore, 
kindled  a  little  fire,  and  raised  a  wretched  bark  cabin, 
where  they  laid  him  as  comfortably  as  they  could.  But 
they  were  so  overcome  by  sadness,  that,  as  they  afterwards 
said,  they  did  not  know  what  they  were  doing. 

"The  Father  being  thus  stretched  on  the  shore,  like  St. 
Francis  Xavier,  as  he  had  always  so  ardently  desired,  and 
left  alone  amidst  those  forests — for  his  companions  were 
engaged  in  unloading — he  had  leisure  to  repeat  all  the 
acts  in  which  he  had  employed  himself  during  the  preced- 
ing days.  When  his  dear  companions  afterwards  came  up, 
quite  dejected,  he  consoled  them  and  gave  them  hopes  that 
God  would  take  care  of  them  after  his  death,  in  those  new 
and  unknown  countries.  He  gave  them  his  last  instruc- 
tions, thanked  them  for  all  the  charity  they  had  shown 
him  during  the  voyage,  begged  their  pardon  for  the  trouble 
he  had  given  them,  and  directed  them  also  to  ask  pardon 
in  his  name  of  all  our  Fathers  and  Brothers  in  the  Ottawa 
country,  and  then  disposed  them  to  receive  the  Sacrament 
of  Penance,  which  he  administered  to  them  for  the  last 
time.  He  also  gave  them  a  paper,  on  which  he  had  written 
all  his  faults  since  his  last  confession,  to  be  given  to  his 
superior  to  oblige  him  to  pray  more  fervently  for  him. 


W 


88 


RT.  BEV.   FRBDERIO   BARAQA. 


Hi*     • 


It 


''i 


ii' '  $ 


'i 


In  fine,  he  i)roniised  not  to  forget  tlieui  in  lieaven,  and  as 
he  was  very  kind-hearted,  and  knew  them  to  he  worn  out 
with  the  toil  of  the  preceding  days,  he  hade  them  go  and 
take  a  little  rest,  assuring  them  that  his  hour  was  not  so 
near,  hut  that  he  would  wake  them  when  it  was  time,  as 
in  fact  he  did  two  or  three  hours  after,  calling  them  when 
about  to  enter  his  agony. 

''When  they  came  near  he  embraced  them  for  the  last 
time,  while  they  melted  in  tears  at  his  feet.  He  then 
asked  them  for  the  Holy  Water  and  his  reliquary,  and 
taking  off  his  crucifix,  which  he  wore  around  his  neck,  he 
placed  it  in  the  hands  of  one,  asking  him  to  hold  it  con- 
stantly opposite  him,  raised  before  his  eyes.  Then,  feel- 
ing that  ho  had  but  little  time  to  live,  he  made  a  last  effort, 
clasped  his  hands,  aiid  with  his  eyes  fixed  sweetly  on  his 
crucifix,  he  pronounced  aloud  his  profession  of  faith  and 
thanked  the  Divine  Majesty  for  the  immense  grace  He 
did  him  in  allowing  him  to  die  in  the  Society  of  Jesus ;  to 
die  in  it  as  a  missionary  of  Jesus  Christ,  and,  above  all, 
to  die  in  it,  as  he  had  always  asked,  in  a  wretched  cabin, 
amidst  the  forests,  destitude  of  all  human  aid. 

"Hereui)on  he  became  silent,  conversing  inwardly  with 
God ;  yet,  from  time  to  time,  words  escaped  him :  'Sus- 
tinnit  anima  mea  in  verbo  ejus — my  soul  hath  relied  on 
His  word,'  or,  'Mater  Dei,  memento  mei ! — Mother  of 
God,  remember  me !'  which  were  the  last  wordi'  he  uttered 
before  entering  on  his  agony,  which  w^as  very  calm  and 
gentle.  He  had  begged  his  companions  to  remind  him, 
when  they  saw  him  about  to  expire,  to  pronounce  fre- 
quently the  names  of  Jesus  and  Mary.  When  he  could 
not  do  it  himself,  they  did  it  for  him;  and  whei^  they 
thought  him  about  to  die,  one  cried  aloud:  'Jesus, 
Maria !'  which  ho  repeated  several  times  distinctly,  and 
then,  as  if  at  those  sacred  names  something  had  appeared 
to  him,  he  suddenly  raised  his  eyes  above  his  crucifix,  fix- 
ing them  apparently  on  some  object,  which  he  seemed  to 


FATHER   MARgUETTE. 


39 


behold  with  i)leaMuro,  and  thus,  witli  a  countenance  all 
radiant  with  smiles,  lio  expired  without  a  struggle,  as 
gently  as  it'  he  had  sunk  into  a  quiet  sleep,  May  18th, 
1075".^ 

''Ilis  two  poor  companions,  after  shedding  many  tears 
over  his  hody,  and  having  laid  it  out  as  he  had  directed, 
carried  it  devoutly  to  the  grave,  ringing  the  bell  according 
to  his  injunction,  and  raised  a  large  cross  near  it,  to  servo 
as  a  mark  for  passers-by.  When  they  talked  of  embark- 
ing, one  of  them,  who  for  several  days  had  been  over- 
whelmed with  sadness  and  so  racked  in  body  by  acute 
pains  that  he  could  neither  eat  nor  breathe  without  pain, 
resolved,  whilst  his  companion  was  preparing  all  for 
endjarkation,  to  go  to  the  grave  of  his  good  Father  and 
pray  him  to  intercede  for  him  with  the  glorious  Virgin, 
as  he  had  promised,  not  doubting  that  he  was  already  in 
heaven.  He  accordingly  knelt  down,  said  a  short  prayer, 
and  having  respectfully  taken  some  earth  from  the  grave, 
he  put  it  on  his  breast,  whereupon  the  pain  immediately 
ceased,  his  sadness  was  changed  into  joy,  which  continued 
during  the  rest  of  the  voyage. 

"God  did  not  suffer  so  precious  a  deposit  to  remain 
unhonored  and  forgotten  amid  the  woods.  The  Kiskakon 
Indians,  who  for  the  last  ten  years  piddicly  professed 
Christianity,  in  which  they  were  first  instructed  by  Father 
]\[arquette  at  La  Pointe  du  Saint  Esprit,  at  the  extremity 
of  Lake  Superior  (between  Ashland  and  Washburn),  were 
hunting  last  winter  on  the  banks  of  Lake  Illinois  (Michi- 
gan). As  they  were  returning,  early  in  spring,  they 
resolved  to  pass  by  the  tomb  of  their  good  Father,  whom 


I  mi] 


I  «>■' 


il 


1^ 


'We  have  given  this  affecting  narrative  of  Father  Marquette's 
dear  .  lii  full.  Well  may  we  pray  in  the  words  of  Holy  Writ:  "May 
my  soul  die  the  death  of  the  just  and  may  my  end  be  like  unto 
theirs."  It  is  highly  probable  that  Father  Marquette  died  where  the 
modern  town  of  Ludington  now  stands,  though  some  claim  it  was 
near  Charlevoix. 


40 


BT.  REV.    FBBDEKIu  BABAGA. 


iiiiilr 


I/!!; 


it^' ; !)» 


iii 


they  tenderly  loved,  and  God  even  gave  them  the  thought 
of  taking  his  remains  and  bringing  them  to  our  church  at 
the  Mission  of  St.  Ignatius,  at  Missilimakinac,  where  they 
reside. 

"They  accordingly  repaired  to  the  spot,  and  after  some 
deliberation  they  resolved  to  proceed  with  thvir  Father, 
as  they  usually  do  with  those  whom  they  respect.  They 
opened  the  grave,  divested  the  body,  and  though  the  flesh 
and  intestines  were  all  dried  up,  they  found  it  whole,  the 
skin  being  in  no  way  injured.  This  did  not  prevent  their 
dissecting  it  according  to  their  custom.  They  washed  the 
bones  and  dried  them  in  the  sun.  Then  putting  them 
neatly  in  a  box  of  birch  bark,  they  set  out  to  boar  them  to 
the  house  of  St.  Ignatius. 

"The  convoy  consisted  of  nearly  thirty  canoes  in  excel- 
lent order,  including  even  a  good  number  of  Iroquois,  who 
had  joined  our  Algonquins,  to  honor  the  ceremony.  As 
they  approached  our  house.  Father  !N[ouvel,  who  is  Supe- 
rior, went  to  meet  them  with  Father  Pierson,  accompanied 
by  all  the  French  and  Indians  of  the  place.  Having 
caused  the  convoy  to  stop,  they  made  the  ordinary  inter- 
rogations to  verify  the  fact  thrt  the  body,  which  they  bore, 
was  really  that  of  Father  Marquette.  Then,  before  land- 
ing, he  intoned  the  'De  Profundis'  in  sight  of  the  thirty 
canoes  still  on  the  water,  and  of  all  tie  people  on  the  shore. 
After  this  the  body  was  carried  tc  the  church,  observing 
all  tiiat  the  ritual  prescribes  for  such  ceremonies.  It 
remained  exposed  under  a  pall,  stretched  as  if  over  a  coffin, 
all  that  day,  which  was  Pentecost — Monday,  the  8th  of 
June  (1677).  The  nsxt  day,  when  all  the  funeral  honors 
had  been  paid  it,  it  was  deposited  in  a  little  vault  in  the 
middle  of  the  church,  where  he  reposed  as  the  guardian 
angel  of  our  Ottawa  Missions.  The  Indi:^ns  often  come 
to  pray  at  his  tomb." 

On  September  3d,  1877,  Very  Kev.  Edward  Jacker, 
then  stationed  at  St.  Ignace,  discovered  the  grave  of  Father 


•  f  r 


FATHER  MABQUBTTE. 


41 


Marquette.     A  monument  has  been  erected  on  the  spot, 
with  the  following  inscription  f 

In  Mbmobiam: 
REV.  Di  Ptbis  J.  MARQUETTE,  S.  J  , 

QUI  OBIIT 

DIE   l8  MAII,   MDCLXXV. 

XXXVIII  ANNOS  NAT: 

ET  SEPULTU8  EST  IN  I8T0  8BPULCHRO 
A.D.,  MDCLXXVII. 

B    I.  P. 

lapis  iste  bbbctus  est  ab  inc0li8  oppidi 
St.  Ignatii 

A.  t;.,  MDCCCLXXXII 


I 


ri !  '!:i 


m '  '>;:• 


CHAPTER   ^ai. 


FATHER    GABRIEL    DEEUILLETTES^     S.     J.  J    HIS     LABORS     IN 
MAINE^    CANADA^    AND    MICHIGAN. 

Another  most  worthy  predecessor  of  Bishop  Baraga  in 
the  JSTorthwest  was  F.  Gabriel  Dreuillettes,  S.  J.  He 
arrived  at  Quebec  on  August  15th,  1643,  accompanied  by 
two  Fathers  of  his  Order,  namely,  Leonard  Garreau  and 
Noel  Chabanel.  These  two  Fathers  died  as  martyrs  in 
the  missionary  field ;  the  former  was  shot  by  the  Iroquois, 
the  latter  w^as  most  probably  assassinated  by  an  apostate 
Huron.  On  the  same  ship  also  arrived  Rev.  Chartier,  a 
secular  priest,  and  three  nuns. 

In  1645  F.  Dreuillettes  accompanied  some  Indians  on 
their  winter  chase.  The  poor  Father  endured  untold  hard- 
ships, hunger,  and  every  kind  of  misery.  His  ministry, 
however,  was  productive  of  abundant  fruit  in  the  hearts 
of  the  poor  people,  who  had  an  opportunity  to  hear  fre- 
quently the  word  of  God  and  receive  the  Holy  Sacraments. 
The  continual  smoke  in  their  wig^vams  made  him  blind 
for  some  time,  but  through  the  powerful  intercession  of 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  for  whom  he  had  always  enter- 
tained filial  devotion,  and  whom  he  had  invoked  most 
earnestly  with  his  simple,  but  pious  j>eople,  he  recovered 
his  sight  instantly  and  perfectly,  whilst  in  the  act  of  offer- 
ing the  Mass  of  the  Blessed  Virgi':  which  he  knew  by 
heart. 

For  several  years  he  labored  with  great  zeal  amongst 
the  Abenakis  of  Maine.  He  was  exceedingly  kind-hearted 
and  thereby  gained  the  hearts  of  all  who  came  in  contact 


FATHER   GABRIEL   DREUIJiLETTES. 


4j 


^vitll  him.  llo  nursed  the  poor,  sick  Indians  with  all  the 
love  and  kindness  of  a  father.  By  day  and  by  night  he 
would  watcn  at  their  bedside.  Ho  used  to  bring  them  food, 
and  if  he  received  any  delicacies  from  others,  he  would 
bring  them  to  the  sick. 

In  his  travels  amongst  the  Indians  of  Maine  he  came 
to  a  Xew  '  ngland  settlement  on  the  Kenebec  River,  where 
he  was  it  jeived  and  treated  most  kindly.  He  also  visited 
other  white  settlements  near  the  sea  coast  and  was  every- 
where treated  with  great  respect.  They  had  found  out 
that  his  conduct  was  most  exemplary  and  that  he  sought 
not  furs,  but  souls.  Even  the  Protestant  ministers  of 
Plymouth  and  Boston  approved  of  his  apostolic  labors 
amongst  the  Indians. 

At  Pentagouet  he  found  a  small  community  of  French 
Capuchins,  who  overwhelmed  the  good  Father  with  kind 
attentions  during  the  few  days  he  stopped  with  them. 

F.  Dreuillettes  accompanied  his  Indians  everywhere 
on  their  chase,  doing  an  immense  amount  of  good  by  his 
mortified,  apostolic  life,  his  sublime  virtues,  his  incessant 
labors  and  his  wonderful,  if  :iot  miraculous,  cures.  He 
was  truly  "a  hunter  of  souls."  ^NToticing  day  after  day 
the  saintly,  self-sacrificing  life  of  this  holy  man,  even  the 
pagans  were  struck  with  admiration.  They  contrasted  the 
holy  life  of  the  missionary  with  that  of  their  pagan  medi- 
cine-men. 

''The  God,  whom  this  Father  preaches,"  said  they, 
"must  be  powerful,  since  He  cures  so  perfectly  the  greatest 
and  most  contagious  diseases,  which  the  inanitous  cannot 
accomplish,  whom  our  sorcoiers  invoke.  This  God  must 
be  great  and  wise,  since  He  nuikes  this  stranger  s])eak  our 
language  in  two  or  three  months,  which  the  Algonquins 
cannot  do  after  living  with  us  a  whole  year.  This  God 
must  be  good  and  powerful,  since  He  takes  from  this  Patri- 
arch (that  was  the  name  they  gave  him;  the  fear  of  the 
most  contagious   diseases   and   protects   hii  5    against   the 


■' ,1  ;'i'! 


44 


RT.  BEY.   FREDERIC  BARAQA. 


iH; 


threats  of  our  sorcerers  and  against  the  evil  of  their 
charms,  at  which  he  mocks.  This  man  is  different  from 
onr  medicine-men.  They  are  always  begging;  he  never 
asks  for  anything.  They  are,  so  to  say,  never  with  the 
sick;  he  stays  with  them  day  and  night.  They  seek  but 
the  furs  of  beavers  and  other  animals;  he  does  not  even 
look  at  them  through  a  corner  of  his  eye  Our  sorcerers 
make  good  cheer  as  long  as  possible;  the  Father  fasts 
sometimes  fifty  days,  with  only  a  little  corn  and  without 
wanting  to  taste  of  meat.  If  we  give  him  some  delicacy, 
he  brings  it  immediately  to  our  sick.  He  is  full  of  cheer 
in  the  dangers  and  sufferings  of  a  long  voyage.  He  is 
always  busy  with  us,  our  children  and  our  sick.  He  is 
welcome  everywhere.  The  French  at  Pentagouet  treated 
him  most  kindly ;  and,  what  is  more  wonderful,  the  Eng- 
lish, who  are  not  of  the  same  country  nor  of  the  same  lan- 
guage, respect  him ;  all  this  shows  that  his  God  is  good  and 
powerful." 

The  Iroquois  having  struck  terror  into  the  hearts  of 
all  the  surrounding  country  by  their  great  victories  over 
the  Hurons  in  1648-1649,  the  Abenakis  of  Maine  deputed 
F.  Dreuillettes  to  visit  the  governor  of  Boston  and  prevail 
upon  him  and  his  people  to  aid  them  against  the  fearful 
enemy,  lie  accordingly  went  to  Plymouth  and  Boston 
and  visited  also  other  New  England  settlements  and  was 
everywhere  weU  received.  He  did  not,  however,  succeed 
in  stirring  up  the  people  of  ^MTew  England  against  the 
Iroquois.  There  was  too  much  jealousy  and  bad  feeling 
between  the  two  European  nations,  who  contended  for  the 
mastery  of  the  great  North- American  continent. 

What  helped  the  cause  of  religion  among  the  Indians 
under  the  Father's  charge  w^as  his  wonderful,  if  noi  mirac- 
ulous, success  in  healing  the  sick.  He  was  a  very  holy 
man,  and  hence  his  prayers  very  powerful  with  God.  It 
would  be  out  of  place  here  to  dwell  at  length  on  the  count- 
less cures  he  performed  upon  the  sick  Abenakis,  Ifontag- 


FATHER   GABRIEL   DBEUILLETTES. 


45 


nais,  Hurons,  and  Upper  Algonquins.  Many  of  them  are 
recounted  in  the  Jesuit  Relations  between  1G43-72.  How- 
ever, the  writer  cannot  forego  the  pleasure  of  giving  his 
own  account  of  one  performed  on  an  old  man,  almost  a 
centenarian,  in  Maine  in  1647.  He  writes  (Relation  of 
1652,  page  27) : 

"I.  met  an  old  man  of  about  one  hundred  years.  I  had 
baptized  him  already  in  1647,  believing  him  to  be  on  the 
brink  of  the  grave.  This  good  neophyte,  whom  I  named 
Simeon,  received  the  life  of  the  body  and  of  the  soul  as 
suddenly  after  three  or  four  y^ars  of  languishing  sickness 
in  his  extreme  old  age,  that  he  was  a  subject  of  astonish- 
ment to  all  his  countrymen.  ^You  know  well,'  he  said  to 
them,  'that  I  was  dead  (so  to  say)  before  my  Baptism.  I 
did  not  live  any  more.  I  could  not  move.  Two  days  after- 
wards I  was  seen  in  health.  I  have  killed  this  winter  four 
moose  that  I  overtook  in  running.  I  have  slain  two  bears 
and  killed  a  number  of  deer.  I  continually  think  of  Him 
who  made  all.  I  speak  often  to  Jesus ;  He  fortifies  and 
consoles  me.  I  outlive  my  family;  I  have  seen  die  my 
son,  my  wife,  and  my  little  nephews.  At  first  I  felt  some 
grief  in  losing  them,  but  as  soon  as  I  began  to  pray,  my 
heart  was  consoled,  knowing  that  those  who  believe  and 
are  baptized  go  to  paradise.  I  thanked  Him,  who  made 
all,  that  they  died  as  Christians.  I  feel  happy  in  my  soul 
because  I  shall  soon  see  them  in  heaven.  When  my  heiirt 
wants  to  wander  away  in  grief,  I  throw  myself  down  on 
mv  knees  and  praver  makes  me  find  anew  mv  heart.' 

"Another  old  man,  still  more  advanced  in  years,  is  so 
strongly  addicted  to  prayer  that  he  passes  a  part  of  the 
night  conversing  only  with  God.  Sleeping  once  in  his 
wigvv'am,  I  heard  him  get  up  secretly.  The  darkness  with- 
drew him  from  my  eyes,  but  not  from  my  ears.  He  com- 
menced his  prayers  with  those  I  had  taught  him.  He  then 
added  others  so  well  and  made  such  amorous  acts  of  love 
to  God  that  I  was  over-delighted." 


- 1 


iU 


'ii 


1 

1 

' 

I   *; 

,''1 

1 

II 

1 

1 

W !  s">' 


^iii-i 


46 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


These  extracts,  and  many  other  edifying  facts  that 
might  be  added,  did  we  not  fear  to  tire  the  reader,  show 
that  those  grand  old  Jesuit  missionaries  of  Canada  formed 
Christians  of  the  very  best  kind.  They  show  that  the  reli- 
gion of  these  Indian  converts  was  not,  as  some  of  our  ene- 
mies assert,  mere  fonnalism,  but  that  it  penetrated  deeply 
into  their  hearts,  purifying,  enlightening  and  ennobling 
them,  making  them  Christians  that  would  compare  favor- 
ably with  any  Christians  of  Europe,  of  ancient  or  modern 
times. 

In  1656  Fathers  Dreuillettes  and  Garreau  attempted 
to  go  and  convert  the  Upper  Algon quins,  by  which  name 
were  designated  the  Ottawas,  Chippewas,  Illinois  and 
other  tribes  belonging  to  the  great  Algic  family  of  nations. 
They  embarked  on  a  flotilla  of  more  than  sixty  canoes  of 
these  Upper  Algonquins.  However,  on  the  30th  of  August 
the  party  was  ambuscaded  by  a  small  band  of  Iroquois, 
who  awaited  the  flotilla  near  Montreal  at  a  place  where 
they  had  to  pass  by.  The  enemy  firing  from  behind  the 
trees  on  the  bank,  killed  several  of  the  Algonquins  and  also 
mortally  woimded  F.  Garreau.  He  died  three  days  later 
at  Montreal.  In  their  hasty  departure  the  Algonquins 
abandoned  Dreuillettes,  who  was  thus  obliged  to  postpone 
his  intended  voyage. 

Four  years  later,  in  1670,  he  was  sent  to  Sault  Ste. 
Marie,  where,  by  his  apostolic  labors,  his  exceedingly  great 
kindness,  and  his  miraculous  cures,  he  converted  a  great 
number  of  pagans.  Of  all  the  ancient  Canadian  mission- 
aries F.  Dreuillettes  seems  to  have  been  gifted  in  a  par- 
ticular manner  and  to  a  wonderful  degree  with  the  "grace 
of  curing — gratia  curationum."  Wherever  we  read  of  him 
in  the  Relations  we  find  accounts  of  his  miraculous  cures. 
The  "Relation"  of  1671  mentions  ten  of  his  wonderful 
cures  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  It  was  greatly  due  to  these 
extraordinary  cures  that  the  Christian  religion  was  so 
highly  extolled  by  the  Indians  and  so  many  of  them  con- 


FATHER  GABBIEL  DBEUILLETTE8. 


47 


verted.  They  brought  their  children  in  great  numbers  to 
be  baptized,  declaring  themselves  ready  to  embrace  the 
faith  as  soon  as  they  would  be  sufficiently  instructed.  One 
of  their  head  chiefs,  named  Ishkouakite,  one  day  seeing 
Father  Dreuillettos  summoning  by  the  sound  of  a  little 
bell  the  women  and  children  to  instruction,  remarked  as 
follows : 

"The  Black-robes  are  truly  our  fathers.  It  is  they 
who  take  care  of  us  and  give  life  to  the  Sault  by  assembling 
our  wives  and  children  at  their  place  (for  instruction) 
and  by  praying  for  us  to  Jesus,  the  God  of  war.  Yes,  even 
if  the  Sioux  should  come  to  attack  us,  as  we  have  been 
informed  they  intend  to  do,  we  put  all  our  confidence  in 
the  King  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  is  preached  to  us.  He 
alone  can  guard  us.  It  is  He  that  heals  so  often  our  sick ; 
it  is  He  who  preserves  our  young  men  from  accidents, 
when  they  go  to  traffic  or  war.  How  happy  are  we  in 
dwelling  so  near  the  Church !  Young  people,  women  and 
children !    Let  no  one  be  slothful  in  attending  prayer !" 

Father  Dreuillettes  continued  to  labor  year  after  year 
at  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  As  late  as  1675  he  is  mentioned  as 
laboring  at  his  post  with  his  customary  zeal  and  success. 
He  spent  about  thirty-five  years  in  the  Indian  mission 
field.  The  writer  has  not  been  able  to  ascertain  the  year 
of  his  death. 

For  an  account  of  a  terrible  tragedy,  that  occurred  in 
1674  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  we  refer  the  reader  to  a  note  in 
the  appendix. 


111 


i 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


I  111  I 


t   1   ^-: 


If  i    ,(• 


MISSIONARIES  THAT  LABORED  IN  THE  NORTHWEST  DURING 
THE  ETi'HTEr  VTJ     CENTVRY. 


Bet^ 


the 


6 


1800  ther< 


eat 


years  j 

dearth  of  missionary  accounts.  This  is  due  to  several 
causes.  One  of  the  principal  reasons  was  the  discontinu- 
ance of  the  Jesuit  Relations  in  1672.  The  discontinuation 
of  these  edifying  and  interesting  accounts  is  much  to  he 
deplored  hy  all  students  of  Canadian  and  iN^orthwestern 
history. 

Some  fragments  of  later  Relaters,  condensed  and  com- 
piled by  Father  Dablon,  bringing  the  account  of  Jesuit 
labors  in  Canada  and  the  I^orthwest  down  to  1678,  have 
been  published  in  our  days  through  the  untiring  zeal  of 
Father  Martin,  S.  J.,  and  John  Gilmary  Shea,  under  the 
title,  "Les  Missions  du  Canada."  They  contain  F.  Mar- 
quette's Journal,  his  discovery  of  the  Mississippi,  his 
establishing  the  Mission  of  the  Immaculate  Conception 
amongst  the  Illinoi?,  also  the  labors  of  Fathers  AUouez, 
Andre,  Dreuillettes,  etc.  Many  of  these  accounts  will  be 
of  special  interest  to  Catholic  historians  of  Wisconsin. 
However,  as  it  is  our  intention  to  confine  ourselves  in  this 
work  to  the  territory  consecrated  by  the  labors  of  Baraga, 
we  will  speak  here  only  of  those  missionaries  who  laljored 
before  him  in  the  same  field  which  he  aftervvards  tilled 
with  such  great  success. 

It  is  a  fact  patent  to  all  readers  of  Catholic  missionary 
accounts  that  the  eighteenth  century  was  far  less  pro- 
ductive of  good  results  than  the  century  preceding  it.    For 


MISSIONARIES  OP  THE  NORTHWEST. 


49 


this  many  reasons  may  be  assigned.  One  was  tiie  unset- 
tied  state  of  Canada  and  *lie  Northwest.  Fov  seventv-t'our 
years  tliere  \/as  almost  incessant  war  between  England 
and  France  and  their  A.aerican  colonies  for  the  mastery 
of  the  St.  Lawrence  Valley.    There  was: 

King  William's  war,  A.  i).  1089-1097. 

()i.oeu  Anne's  war,  1702-17i;i. 

King  George's  war,  1744-1748. 

The  Old  French  and  Indian  war,  1754-1763. 

Conspiracy  of  Pontiac,  in  1703. 

The  American  Revohition,  1770-1783. 

These  wars  Avere  very  unfavorable  to  miss'  lar  vork. 
'Jlie  Indian  was  kept  in  continual  excitemeni  i  ip  true, 
there  were  many  wars  during  the  preceding*  ce^i:  uvy;  but 
they  had,  ai  least  for  the  Christian  Huro'  aid  Algon- 
quins,  to  some  extent,  the  appearance  of  re  igious  wars, 
as  they  viewed  the  Iroquois  not  only  as  enemies  of  their 
country,  but  also  of  their  religion. 

^loreover,  the  Canadian  governors,  at  least  several  of 
tli(?m,  for  instance,  Comte  de  Frontenac,  we^re  more  or  less 
luifriendly  to  the  Jesuits.  The  latter  opposed  with  all 
their  might  the  nefarious  liquor  traffic  between  the  French 
and  Indians,  which  several  governors  tolerated  from 
motives  of  trade.  It  was  principally  the  Jesuits  that 
labored  amongst  the  Indians.  The  secular  clergy  and  the 
Franciscans  confined  their  work  chiefly  to  the  French  set- 
tlements and  military  posts.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  this 
unfriendly  feeling  towards  the  Jesuits  could  not  but  be 
injurious  to  their  work.  Finally,  the  suppression  of  their 
Order  in  1775  was  a  fearful  blow  to  Indian  missionary 
work.  The  once  flourishing  missions  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie, 
Green  Bay,  St.  Joseph,  Mackinac,  were  almost  entirely 
abandoned  until  they  were  revived  again  in  the  fore  part 
of  the  present  century,  by  Fathers  Gabriel  Richard, 
Francis  Vincent  Badin,  Baraga,  Van  den  Broek,  and 
others.    For  a  list  of  the  clergymen  who  ofliciated  at  Macki- 


§ 


M 


60 


RT.  REV.    FREDliKlO    BARAGA. 


riuc  and  Detroit  during  the  last  century  we  refer  I  he  reader 
appen(' 


to  the 


lix  at  the  end  of  this  work. 


Arbro  Croehe  being  near  to  Maekinuc,  was  jitteiided 
from  time  to  time  from  the  last-named  mission  during  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  eentury.  Father  Sebastian 
Jvasle,  S.  .1.,  who  labo'"^d  for  some  time  jimongst  the  Illi- 
nois, and  tinaliy  ap  vng  the  Abenakis  of  Elaine,  and  who 
was  slain  in  17?  bv  a  New  FnoJand  i)artv,  states  that 
there  were  F-  .ners  of  his  Order  in  KJlll  at  Maekinae, 
Arbre  Croe'.e,  JSav  of  the  Piiants,  <»r  (ireen  l>av,  and  St. 


I 


J 


)h      A. 


(josepn  As  to  the  labors  of  those  devoted  men  wc^  knoAV 
next  t )  nothing.  Let  ns  ho])e  that  future  research  in  Cana- 
dian a 'id  French  arcliives  mav  brinii'  \n  liulit  some  of  their 
letters  We  will  give  a  few  items  of  interest  alK)iit  Father 
l)u  Jai  nay,  S.  »!.,  who,  though  stationed  at  Mackinac,  or 
Point  ^t.  Ignace,  resided  also  f(n'  some  lime  at  A/bre 
Croehe,  \'liere,  it  is  said,  the-  Ottawas  gave  him  a  tract  of 
land,  some  of  which  he  cultivated,  dohii  Gilmarv  Shea 
asserts  that  ht  Ued  at  Arbre  Croehe,  Mliereas  others  claim 
that  his  death  oc(  Mrred  at  St.  Joseph's  Mission. 

In  17C^3  Pontiac  the  (liippewa  chief  of  St.  Clair, 
plotted  tht^  destruction  of  all  the  Englisli  forts  in  the 
Northwest.  On  the  2d  of  June  of  that  year  a  Cliip])ewa 
pai'ty  played  their  national  game  of  lacrosse,  or  pagaa- 
dowewin,  near  the  fort  of  Mackinaw.  Hiis  fort  was  not 
located  on  the  Island  of  Mackinac,  nor  at  St.  Ignace,  but 
south  of  the  Strait  of  Mackinaw,  at  the  northern 
extremity  of  the  southern  ]:)eninsula  of  Michigan,  where 
Mackinaw  City  now  stands.  During  the  play  the  ball  was 
several  times  thrown  designedly  over  the  walls  of  the  fort, 
when  it  would  be  thrown  back  bv  those  within.  Finally, 
to  facilitate  matters,  the  gate  of  the  fort  w{(s  left  open,  so 
that  the  players  could  get  the  ball  themselves,  if  it  should 
happen  to  be  throv/n  inside  the  fort.  That  was  just  what 
the  Chippewas  wanted.  The  next  time  the  ball  was  thrown 
into  the  fort  the  players  rushed  in,  seized  the  arms,  which 


MISS10NAB1E8  OP  THE  NORTHWEST. 


51 


iii 


their  squaws  held  concealed  under  ♦heir  blankets,  rushed 
upon  the  few  unsuspecting  English  aoldiers  and  butchered 
them  before  the  eyes  of  the  French  within  tlie  fort,  who 
themselves  were  not  molested.  Captain  George  E.  Ether- 
ington  was  seized  and  bound  and  v/as  about  to  be  burned, 
but  was  saved  by  the  timely  arrival  of  Charles  Langlade. 
Whether  Father  JJu  Jaunay  was  in  the  fort  at  the  time 
of  the  massacre  does  not  appear.  We  are  inclined  to  think 
that  he  was  not  there,  but  at  Arbre  Croche  at  that  time. 
At  any  rate,  ho  did  all  he  could  for  the  English  com- 
mander and  the  remaining  soldiers  of  the  fort.  We  will 
give  a  few  extracts  of  Etherington's  letter  and  another 
co-temporary  document.  Writing  to  Major  Gladwyn, 
commandant  at  Detroit,  undei*  date  of  June  12th,  1763, 
he  says : 

"I  have  been  very  much  obliged  to  Messrs. 
Langlade  and  Farli,  the  interpreter,  as  likewise  to  the 
Jesuit,  for  the  many  good  offices  they  have  done  us  on  this 
occasion.  The  priest  seems  inclined  to  go  down  to  your 
post  for  a  day  or  two,  which  I  am  very  glad  of,  as  he  is  a 
very  good  man,  and  has  a  great  deal  to  say  with  the 
savages  hereabouts,  who  will  believe  everything  he  tells  on 
his  return,  which  I  hope  will  be  soon.  The  Cutaways 
(Ottawas)  say  they  will  take  Lieut.  Lesley,  me  and  the 
eleven  men,  which  I  mentioned  before  were  in  their  hands,, 
up  to  their  village  (Arbre  Croche),  and  there  keep  us  till 
they  hear  what  is  doing  at  your  post.  They  have  sent  thia 
canot  (canoe)  for  that  purpose.  I  refer  you  to  the  priest 
for  the  particulars  of  this  melancholy  affair,  and  am,  dear 
sir.  Yours  very  sinceioly, 

Geo.  Etherington. 
To  Major  Gladwyn: 

P.  S. — The  Indians  that  are  to  carry  the  priest  to 
Detroit  will  not  undertake  to  land  him  at  the  fort,  but  at 
some  Indian  village  near  it ;  so  you  must  not  take  it  amiss 


mi 


l-;i,;' 


62 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAOA. 


that  he  docs  not  pay  you  the  tirst  visit.  And  once  more  I 
beg  that  nothing  may. stop  your  sending  him  back  the  next 
day  after  his  arrival,  if  possible,  as  wo  shall  be  at  a  groat 
loss  for  the  want  of  him,  and  1  do  not  doubt  that  you  will 
do  all  in  your  power  to  make  him  return,  as  you  see  the 
situation  wo  are  in,  and  send  up  provisions  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible, and  ammunition,  as  what  we  had  was  pillaged  by 
the  savages.    Adieu. 

Gko.  Etueuington." 


lott( 


V 


1 


i     M 


i 


The  priest  mentioned  in  Etherin^ton  s  letter  is  rere 
Du  .launay.  This  courageous  missionary,  who  had  already 
rendered  the  greatest  service  to  the  British  prisoners  in 
the  hands  of  the  Ottawas,  in  order  to  be  still  more  useful 
to  them,  did  not  fear  to  expose  himself  to  the  dangers  and 
fatigues  of  a  long  and  monotonous  canoe-voyage  upon  Lake 
Huron.  He  accomplished  his  mission  with  fidelity,  had 
an  interview  with  Major  Gladwyn,  then  left  Detroit  to 
return  to  Michillimackinac  on  the  20th  of  June,  1763,  as 
we  leani  by  the  following  extract  from  a  curious  narrative, 
entitled,  "Diary  of  the  Siege  of  Detroit"  : 

'Mune  20th,  1763.  This  morning  the  commandant 
gave  to  the  Jesuit  a  memorandum  of  what  he  should  say 
to  the  Indians  and  French  at  Michillimackinac,  as  also  to 
Captain  Etherington,  seeing  he  did  not  choose  to  carry  a 
letter,  saying  that  if  he  was  ashed  by  the  Indians  if  he  had 
any,  he  would  he  obliged  to  say  yes,  os  he  had  never  told  a 
lie  in  his  life.  He  gave  him  a  belt  to  give  to  the  Ottawas 
there,  desiring  him  to  tell  them  that  he  was  very  well 
pleased  with  their  not  having  meddled  in  an  affair  which 
must  have  brought  on  their  ruin ;  and  that  if  they  would 
send  their  prisoners  to  Montreal,  they  would  convince  the 
general  of  their  good  intentions,  for  which  they  would 
probably  be  well  rewarded." 


CIIAPTKH    IX. 


MFS.<TONAHY     l,ABORS    OK     FATFIKKS     RICHAKI),     UADIN.     AND 
DKJEAN    L\    TUK   JSOIiTU  WKST    i'KlOU  TO   TilK 


AKHIVAI.    OK    K.    IJARAOA. 


During  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  very 
little  niissionarv  work  was  done  in  the  :reat  Northwest. 
Tlie  little  that  was  done  during  that  time  was  confined 
almost  entirely  to  Michillima''kinac  and  Detroit.  Things, 
however,  changed  for  the  better  with  the  arrival  of  Rev. 
Gabriel  Richard,  lie  was  born  in  Saintes,  France,  on  the 
15th  of  October,  1707.  lie  was  ordained  at  Issy,  near 
Paris,  and  became  a  Sulpician  in  1791.  The  following 
year  he  came  to  America  and  was  sent  by  Bishop  Carroll 
to  Illinois  to  labor  among  the  French-Canadians,  half- 
breeds,  and  Indians  at  Kaskaskia.  After  six  v^ar-;  of 
apostolic  labor  he  was  sent  to  Detroit,  where  he  arrived 
in  1708.  Here  he  labored  for  thirtv-four  vears  with  o-reat 
zeal  and  success,  though  not  without  many  trials  and  hard- 
ships. 

On  the  .,d  of  June,  1790,  he  visited  Mackinac  Island 
and  remained  there  three  months.  He  found  things  in 
a  sad  state.    In  his  letter  to  Bishop  Carroll  he  says : 

"The  trade  here  is  principally  in  liquors,  and  sa^  long 
as  this  state  of  things  exists  there  can  be  no  prospect?  of 
making   them    (the   Indians)    Christians.     .     .  Cod 

only  knows  how  many  evils  flow  from  this  traffic.  It  has 
been  observed  that  English  rum  has  destroyed  viore 
Indians  than  ever  did  the  Spanish  sword.     Several  Indian 


ii 


54 


BT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


m 


chiefs  have  requested  that  the  trade  in  liquors  be  abolished 
by  law." 

In  1812  Detroit  was  taken  by  the  British  and  Fathei' 
Richard  taken  prisoner  and  sent  to  Sandwich.  The  writ<  c 
found  an  interesting  item  about  him  and  Tecumseh,  wb'^ii 
he  gives  without,  however,  guaranteeing  its  historical 
truth,  as  he  has  not  found  it  in  any  historical  work.  The 
fact  is  narrated  in  the  Detroit  Catholic  Vindicator,  Ma^' 
5th,  1855,  by  a  well-educated  Indian  of  Mackinac.  lie 
says : 

"The  circumstances  mentioned  in  that  article  vere 
related  to  me  b}  a  person  who  had  heard  Father  Richard 
himself  speak  of  them. 

"When  Hull  surrendered  in  1812,  the  British  required 
the  citizens  of  Detroit,  not  prisoners  of  war,  to  take  the 
oath  of  allegiance  to  the  king  of  Great  Britain.  In  retui'n 
protection  to  persons  and  property  was  promised.  With 
these  advantages  in  view,  some  took  the  oath ;  while  others, 
preferring  to  stand  by  their  country  even  in  the  dark  hour 
of  her  misfortune,  refused  to  take  it.  Among  the  latter 
Avas  Father  Richard.  When  asked  to  swear  allegiance  to 
the  king,  he  answered :  'I  have  taken  one  oath  to  support 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  I  cannot  take 
another.  Do  with  me  as  you  please.'  Upon  this  refusal 
he  was  seized  and  hurried  away  to  Maiden  and  was  there 
placed  among  the  prisoners  of  war. 

"At  Maiden,  the  place  of  confinement  for  the 
prisoners,  wao  a  pen  or  small  enclosure  ol  high  pickets. 
On  cue  side  of  it,  near  the  ground,  there  was  a  small  open- 
ing, through  which  the  prisoners  were  thrust  in,  and  their 
daily  allowance  of  food  passed  to  them,  when  it  was  not 
thrown  in  over  the  pickets,  as  was  sometimes  done. 
Within  this  enclosure  there  was  no  covering  or  shelter  of 
any  kind  as  a  protection  against  the  hot  rays  of  the  noon- 
dav  sun,  or  the  inciemencv  of  the  weather.  This  was  the 
place  into  vv^hich  Father  Richard  was  thrown,  after  having 


■3:1  J 


-  r^. 


FATHERS  RICHARD,  BADIN,  AND  DEJEAN. 


55 


been  denied  the  use  of  even  his  hat.  While  he  was  an 
inn^ate  of  this  pen  the  other  prisoners  paid  him  the  utmost 
respect,  and  they  would  open  for  him,  while  reciting  the 
Rosary  of  the  Blessed  \'irg'in,  a  narrow  walk  through  the 
middle  of  it. 

"Among  the  Indian  allies  of  the  British  in  the  war  of 
1S12,  Teeumseh,  as  everybody  knows,  was  one  of  the  xiost 
distinguished,  and  was  apparently  held  in  high  estimation 
by  them.  One  day,  while  the  above  scenes  were  passing 
at  Maiden,  he  presented  himself  before  the  British  com- 
mander and,  in  tones  and  bearing  of  one  well  aware  of  the 
im]K)rtance  of  his  services,  said  to  him  in  substance  as 
follows : 

*'  'I  have  come  to  tell  you  that  my  young  men  will  fight 
for  you  no  longer,  for  you  hold  the  Black-robe  as  a 
prisoner.  I  cannot  answer  for  my  warriors  while  you  keep 
him  shut  up.    I  demand  his  liberty.' 

'"The  commander,  well  acquainted  with  the  character 
of  his  red  visitor,  and  being  unwilling  to  lose  his  friend- 
ship at  such  a  time  by  a  refusal,  wrote  immediately  the 
order  discharging  Father  Richard  unconditionally,  thus 
leaving  him  to  pursue  his  peaceful  ministry  in  the  country 
unmolested.    Was  Tecurnseh  a  savage?" 

Speaking  of  Father  Richard's  extensive  mission,  Hon. 
Richard  R.  Elliott  says  in  his  ''Sketch  of  the  Life  and 
Times  of  the  Rev.  Gabriel  Richard":  "Probably  the 
greatest  missionary  work  accomplished  under  the  direction 
of  any  one  ])riest  in  this  country  during  the  first  three 
decades  of  this  century  may  be  claimed  for  Father 
Riehnrd."  .  .  .  "The  territory  included  much  of  the 
ground  occupied  by  the  Jesuits  in  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries,  and  extended  from  the  River  Raisin, 
near  Lake  Erie,  along  the  American  shore  of  the  Straits 
of  Detroit,  around  Lake  St.  Clair  and  tributary  streams, 
Lakes  Huron  and  Michigan,  as  far  ns  the  River  St.  Joseph 
on  the  Indiana  border,  Green  Bay  and  other  parts  of  Wis- 


!»' 


n 


"^fitiii 


56 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


:i| 


i"  I 


fill  3^ 


Wis  I 


III 


fir 

i 


If 


conaiii,  the  Island  of  Mackinac,  the  islands  in  Lake  Hnron^ 
tho  Georgian  JJay,  and  np  the  lliver  St.  Mary  to  the  mouth 
of  Jvake  Sniierior." 

in  1832  the  Asiatic  cholera  visited  Detroit.  Father 
liichard  was  day  and  night  busy  attending  the  countless 
sick-calls  of  his  poor,  plague-stricken  people.  He  linally 
succumbed  to  the  dread  disease  and  died  on  the  18th  of 
September,  1S82.  Bishop  Eenwick  and  Fathers  Badin 
and  Baraga  were  at  his  dying  bed.  Thus  passed  away  a 
noble  missionary  priest  after  fortv  vears'  service  in  the 
cause  of  relig'on,  humanity,  literature  and  patriotism. 

In  1823  the  Ottawas  at  ^Vrbre  Croche  sent  the  follow- 
ing petition  to  ('ongress  by  hand  of  Very  Rev.  Ciabriel 
Kichard,  a  member  of  that  body : 

"We,  the  undersigned,  chiefs,  lieadsmen  and  others 
belonging  to  the  Ottawa  tribe,  who  reside  at  Arbre  Croche, 
on  the  eastern  shore  of  Lake  ^Michigan,  use  this  oppor- 
tunitv  to  make  known  our  wishes  and  wants  to  our  Father,, 
the  President  of  the  United  States.  We  thank  our  Father 
and  Congress  for  all  they  have  done  for  us  to  introduce 
amongst  us  morality  and  the  knowledge  of  Jesus,  the 
Saviour  of  the  red  and  white  people.  Confiding  in  your 
fatherly  goodness,  we  ask  for  freedom  of  conscience  and 
for  a  teacher  or  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  who  belongs  to  that 
society  (church)  to  which  belonged  the  member  of  the 
Catholic  Order  of  St.  Ignatius,  which  was  established  at 
Michillimackinac  and  Arbre  Croche  by  Father  ]\[arquette 
and  other  missionaries  of  the  Jesuit  Order.  They  lived 
many  years  in  our  midst.  They  cultivated  a  Held  in  our 
land  in  order  to  teach  us  agriculture  and  Christianity. 
8i\  ce  that  time  we  have  ahvays  longed  for  such  priests. 
SIl  uld  you  deign  to  grant  us  such,  we  shall  ask  them  to 
settle  again  on  the  shore  of  T.,ako  Michigan  near  our  vil- 
lage,  Arbre  Croche,  on  the  same  place  which  Father  Du 
Jaunay  possessed. 

'^If  you  comply  with  the  huudjle  wish  of  your  faithful 


■  i 


FATHERS  RICHARD,  BADIN,  AND  DEJEAN. 


57 


■'f 


sons,  they  shall  be  forever  thankful  to  yon  and  pray  the 
Great  Sj^irit  to  shed  his  blessings  over  the  whites. 

"In   witness   whereof,   we  have   herennto   signed   our 
names.    An^;nst  12th,  1823. 


Hawk^ 
(JaterpillaR;, 
Eagle, 
Bear^ 


Fisii^ 
Crane, 
Flying  Fish, 
Deer/' 


Fonr  months  later,  Macate  Binessi — Black  Bird — 
Avrote  as  follows  to  the  President  of  the  United  States: 

''My  Father !  1  desire  thee  now  to  hear  me — me  and 
all  thy  childven  in  this  far-ofi'  land.  They  extend  their 
hands  to  shake  thine.  We,  the  chiefs,  taihers  of  families, 
and  other  Ottawas,  residing  at  Arbre  Croche,  pray  tbee 
and  earnestly  implore  thee.  Renowned  Father,  to  obtain 
for  us  a  Black-robe  (priest)  like  those  who  instructed  the 
Indians  in  the  neighborhood  of  Montreal.  Tliou  art  our 
Father.  Be  charitable  to  thy  children  ;  listen  to  theuL  We 
desire  to  be  instructed  in  the  same  principles  of  religion 
Avhich  our  forefathers  professed  when  the  ]\lission  of  St. 
lii'natius  was  in  existence. 

"We  address  ourselves  to  thee,  the  first  and  greatest 
Chief  of  the  United  States.  We  entreat  thee  to  help  us 
build  a  house  of  prayer.  We  will  give  land  for  cultivation 
to  the  ^linister  of  the  Great  Sj)irit  whom  thou  shalt  send 
to  instruct  us  and  our  children.  We  shall  do  our  very  best 
to  please  him  and  to  follow  his  goo<:l  advice.  We  shall  feel 
very  liap])v  if  thou  send  us  a  ]\Ian  of  God  of  the  Catholic 
religion  like  those  who  taught  our  forefathers.  Such  is 
the  prayer  of  thy  devoted  children.  They  trust  that  thou, 
their  Father,  wilt  kindly  hear  their  prayer.  This  is  all 
thv  children  ask  of  theo  now. 

''Father,  all  thy  children  extend  their  hand  and  press 
thine  with  all  the  aifection  of  their  hearts. 

Macate  Binessi.'^ 


!l    ■  '  !: 


W, 


liiilii 


58 


RT,  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGa. 


il'i 


'MM 

■   ' .      f -'I  V'  t 


;||ii| 


m 


In  1825  Father  Vincent  Badin  visited  Arbre  Croche, 
Mackinac  Island,  Green  Bay  and  other  places,  as  we  learn 
from  a  letter  to  his  brother  in  France,  dated  Detroit, 
December  25th,  1825.  lie  left  Detroit  on  the  25th  of 
April  of  the  above-named  year  on  the  schooner  "Jackson." 
After  a  long  and  tediors  voyage  he  arrived  at  Mackinac 
Island,  or,  as  it  was  formerly  called,  Michillimackinac. 
He  arrived  in  the  evening  and  was  received  with  the  great- 
est joy  by  all  the  inhabitants.  Catholics  and  Protestants. 
He  w^as  conducted  to  the  court-house,  which  was  lit  up 
and  tastefullv  decorated  for  the  occasion,  and  held  service 
the  same  evening  he  arrived.  He  spent  a  few  days  with 
the  poor  people,  mostly  French-Canadians,  preparing  them 
for  the  Ilolv  Sacraments,  which  thev  were  to  receive  at  his 
return  from  Green  Bav, 

At  Green  Bay  he  stayed  two  months,  teaching  and 
instructing  the  poor  people,  who  were  awfully  ignorant, 
for  they  had  not  seen  a  priest  for  fifty  years,  except  in 
1823,  wdien  Father  Kichard  visited  them.  During  the 
eight  days  the  latter  remained  with  them  he  baptized  one 
hundred  and  twenty-eight  persons  and  married  twenty-six 
couples.  For  two  months  Father  Badin  labored  undefa- 
tigably  amongst  those  rude,  ignorant,  but  well-disposed 
people.  His  instructions  were  well  attended  by  old  and 
young,  Indians,  half-breeds,  and  whites.  A  log  church, 
40x45,  had  been  begun,  it  seems,  during  or  shortly  after 
Father  Richard's  visit  in  1823.  It  was  completed  under 
F.  Badin's  care  and  supervision  and  by  him  blessed  on  the 
26th  of  June,  1825,  in  honor  of  St.  Francis  Xavier.  He 
baptized  a  large  number  of  adults  and  children  and 
admitted  seventeen  persons,  between  thirteen  and  thirty 
years  *-'  aae,  to  their  first  Holy  Communion.  He  then 
returned  to  Ai ickiLiiC. 

His  nexi  vjsit  was  to  Arbre  Croche,  where  he  arrived 
on  the  '''n\'  ox  July  1825.  At  his  first  visit  to  ^lackinac 
he  had  s^  u"  word  t,    the  Indians  of  Arbre  Croche  to  erect 


FATHERS  RICHARD,  BADIN,  AND  DEJEAN. 


59 


a  prayer-wigwam  in  honor  of  the  Great  Spirit  and  in  front 
of  it  a  cross.     When  he,  therefore,  arrived  at  their  village 
he  was  agreeably  surprised  to  find  a  log  chapel,  25x1  V  feet, 
on  the  summit  of  the  hill.     lie  compares  it  to  the  temple 
of  Solomon,  for  neither  iron  nor  nails  had  been  used  in 
its  construction,  but  only  an  axe!     The  poor  Indians  sang 
Ottawa   hymns  during  Holy   Mass  w'ith  great  devotion. 
Indian  singing  is  slow,  solemn  and  aft'ecting.     It  is  not 
art,  but  the  heart  that  sings.     Their  singing  is  more  suit- 
able foi'  divine  service  and  more  soul-elevating  than  that 
Ave  hoar  in  many  of  our  large  churches,  with  their  ''sharps 
and   fiats"    and   their   endless   and   senseless   repetitions. 
Indian  singing  inspires  and  promotes  devotion.     Would 
to  God  that  this  could  be  said  of  all  our  church  singing! 
As  Father  Badin  had  arrived  at  Arbre  Croohe  on  St.  Vin- 
cent's day,  his  patron-saint,  he  dedicated  the  little  chapel 
to  him. 

After  a  short  visit  to  St.  Joseph's  Mission  a-^l  Drum- 
mond  Island,  he  returned  to  Mackinac  and  Arbre  Croche 
As  a  specimen  of  Indian  letter-writing  we  insert  the  fol- 
lowing: letter  of  one  of  the  chiefs  of  Arbre  Croche  to  Father 
Richard : 

''I  salute  the  Black-robe  of  Detroit  and  the  chief  Black- 
robe  at  Rome,  as  also  the  highly  celebrated  Father  of  the 
French,  the  King  of  France,  and  I  press  his  hand. 

"jSTow  that  there  are  so  many  hats  (white  people)  in 
the  country,  we  cannot  kill  enough  game  to  support  our 
children. 

"But,  before  all  things,  Ave  Avant  a  Black- robe  to 
instruct  us.  We  Avill  listen  to  his  Avord  and  fulfill  his  com- 
mands. 

'There  is  t-oo  much  Avhiskey  here  and  we  are  reduced 
to  extremes.  W^e  Avant  to  have  at  Arbre  Croche  a  French 
priest  to  teach  us  temperance  and  the  Avay  '  >  salvation. 
The  number  of  Indians  amounts  to  650,  including  women 
and  children.  Makate  Binessi.'' 


iil\ 


fill 


nmf 


60 


BT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


lilt. 


Wk'. 


fl  r' 


if-i'- 


i'} 


hV-  i' ! 


Oil  the  evening-  before  his  departure  from  Arbre 
(*r(K'he  F.  Badin  buried  with  all  possible  solemnity  a  poor 
Indian  child,  which  he  had  baptized  shortly  before.  The 
darkness  and  stillness  of  the  night,  the  burning  lights,  the 
s(demii  jH'ayers  of  the  ehnrch,  the  singing,  combined  to 
iiiak<'  a  deep  impression  on  their  minds.  In  fact,  one  of 
the  Indians  wanted  in  all  earnest  to  leave  wifo  and  children 
and  become  a  priest!  It  took  all  the  influence  and  per- 
suasion Father  Badin  was  capable  of  to  induce  tli'.s  child 
of  nature  to  return  to  his  wife  and  children. 

The  next  day,  at  sunrise,  all  the  ])(K)r  Indians 
assembled  at  the  beach  to  bid  farewell  to  the  Father,  whom 
they  Il'uI  learned  to  love  so  well.  They  cast  themselves  on 
their  knees  on  the  sandy  beach  to  receive  his  parting  bless- 
ing, which  he  gave  them  A\ith  a  heart  overflowing  with 
emotion  at  the  thought  of  nev.'r  seeing  them  again. 

During  the  voyage  to  ]\Iackinac,  a  venerable  old  man, 
who  accom])anied  them,  ^^^oke  continually  and  with  much 
feeling  of  the  Jesuit  Fathers  who  had  formerly  l)een  sta- 
tioned at  Mackinac.  The  names  of  Frank  and  Du  ffaunay 
were  ever  on  his  lips.  They  were  stationed  at  ■Mackinac 
from  1741  to  1764,  perhaps  even  later.  He  spoke  ve^y 
warinly  about  Father  Du  Jaunay,  who  had  prepared  him 
and  given  him  his  first  IIolv  Communion.  That  must 
have  been  at  least  sixtv  vears  before.  He  had  also  often 
served  his  Mass.  He  showed  Father  Badin  the  place 
where  the  good  Father  used  to  say  his  breviary  walking 
up  and  down.  This  seems  to  refer  to  Arbre  Croche,  where 
Du  .launay  resided  part  of  the  time,  l^othing  esca[)ed 
the  good  old  man's  memory  and  with  love  he  dwelt  on  the 
smallest  circumstances  'Connected  with  the  Father's  actions 
and  labors. 

On  their  wav  back  to  Mackinac  Father  Badin  disem- 

« 

barked  at  St.  Ignace,  about  six  miles  from  the  island,  on 
the  main  land,  the  seat  of  the  old  Jesuit  IVFissiou  founded 
by  Father  PaWon  in  1670,  of  which  F.  Marquette  was  the 


FATHERS  RICHARD,  BADIN,  AND  DEJEAN. 


61 


first  resident  priest  from  1071  to  lOTo.  In  1705  the  mis- 
sion was  abandoned.  The  Fatliers  themselv^es  tired  the 
buildings  before  departing  in  order  to  preserve  them  from 
being  desecrated  by  the  pagans.  Jjefore  the  eiiiireh,  where 
in  1877  Father  Edward  Jacker  found  some  relies  of  Mar- 
quette's body,  a  large  cross  was  erected,  which  was  renewe<i 
from  time  to  time.  It  was  always  held  in  great  veneration 
by  both  ( 'hristians  and  pagans.  With  feelings  of  deep 
reverence  towards  the  noble  missionaries,  who  had  lived 
and  labored  there,  F.  Badin  endeavored  to  find  traces  of 
their  house  and  church.  The  memory  of  their  numy  vir- 
tues and  labors,  of  their  zeal,  courage  and  self-sacrifice 
passed  before  his  mind's  eye.  They  were  the  red  unui's 
truest  and  best  friends,  whom  thev  sought  to  elevate  to  u 
nobler  mode  of  thinking  and  living,  striving  to  make  him 
both  a  true  Christian  and  a  civilized  man. 

Finally,  having  spent  seven  months  c  :i-  missionary 
tour  in  the  Xorthwest,  F.  Badin  returned  to  Detroit  by 
the  middle  of  ]SJ^ovember. 

In  1829  Father  P.  S.  Dejean,  a  French  secular  priest, 
came  to  Arbre  Cyroche,  as  its  first  resident  pastor.  During 
his  two  years'  pastorate  he  accomplished  much  good,  lie 
built  a  church,  r)4x'>0  feet,  with  ten  large  windows,  like- 
wise a  school  and  ])arsonage,  40x20  feet,  with  three  ro<ims, 
the  largest  of  which  was  used  for  a  school  room.  These 
buildings  were  constructed  of  hewn  logs.  As  the  poor 
Indians  had  no  horses  nor  oxen,  they  were  obliged  to  carry 
the  heavy  logs  out  of  tlie  woods  to  the  place  where  the 
church  and  school  were  to  be  erected.  As  some  of  these 
loas  were  thirtv  feet  long  and  verv  heavv,  it  t(X)k  a  "reat 
number  of  men  and  hard  work  to  carry  them.  At  times 
fortv  or  fiftv  would  work  hard  at  these  buildings  for  a 
whole  week.  Certainly  those  poor  Indians  deserve  great 
praise  for  their  persevering  zeal  in  erecting  two  large 
buildings  under  such  unfavorable  circumstances  and  with 
such  incredible  labor.    This  chapel  was  dedicated  and  first 


m 


m 


Wi 


I 


I 


■^ 


i 


o 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


i'ji 
•''I 

i 


\ni 


lii 


rr  k 


Mass  said  therein  on  the  last  Sunday  of  September,  1829, 
when  many  received  also  for  the  first  time  Jioly  Com- 
munioii.  The  school  was  opened  on  the  23d  of  August, 
1821),  and  within  a  month  had  thirty-(!ight  scholars,  of 
whom  eighteen  were  girls.  Twenty-five  children  boarded 
at  the  school,  their  parents  l)ringing  them  some  potatoes 
and  corn  and  the  missionary  giving  them  s(jme  bird  and 
salt.  The  boys  were  made  to  work  at  clearing  the  bind  to 
raise  vegetables.  Mr.  L'Etonrnean  and  Miss  Williams 
were  the  teachers  of  these  children  of  the  forest.  Father 
Dejean,  in  a  letter  to  F.  Richard,  })raises  very  much  their 
zeal  in  instructing  the  poor  children,  who  suffered  con- 
siderable from  the  want  of  proper  clothing. 

Luckily  we  have  another  witness  of  those  tiiiu^.s,  we 
mean  E.  J.  Blackbird,  who  most  probably  attended  this 
school  himself  in  his  boyhood  days.     lie  says: 

"Tn  the  fall  of  1827,  my  father  left  his  subjects  at 
Arbre  ;  roche  proper,  now  Middle  \"illage,  in  charge  of 
his  brother,  Kaw-me-no-te-a,  which  means  Good  Heart,  as 
he  was  persuaded  by  other  chiefs  to  come  and  establish 
himself  where  th^  mission  was  and  send  his  children  to 
school.  There  were  only  three  Indian  log  houses  at  that 
time  in  Little  Traverse  (Harbor  Springs),  one  belonging 
to  my  uncle,  Au-se-ge-nock,  one  for  Joseph  Au-saw-gon, 
my  father's  messenger,  and  another  to  Peter  Sho-min. 
But  we  and  all  other  Indians  lived  in  wigw^ams,  and  all 
the  Indians  were  dressed  in  Indian  style.  Rev.  Mr.  Dejan 
(Dejean)  brought  with  him  a  Frenchman  from  Detroit 
named  Joseph  Letorenue  (L'Evourneau)  as  school  teacher, 
and  two  girls  from  Mackinac  Island  (Miss  Bailie  and 
Miss  Williams)  as  domestic  servants,  and  an  old  nun, 
whose  real  name  I  never  learned  and  knew  only  as  'Sister.' 
She  was  exceedingly  kind  to  Indian  children  and  we  all 
liked  her  verv  much.  The  log  school  house  was  used  as 
a  dwelling  as  well  as  a  school  house,  as  all  the  boys  and 
girls  who  attended   school  Avere  kept  there   continually. 


FATHERS  RICHARD,  BADIN,  AND  DEJEAN. 


68 


saiii(3  as  boarding;  school.  TJi(3  larger  boys  and  girls  were 
taught  h(»nsoh()ld  duties  and  to  cook  for  the  schohirs.  The 
I'liildren  were  kept  quite  clean.  The  French  teacher  took 
very  great  pains  to  teach  them  good  manners,  and  they 
were  taught  no  other  but  the  French  language.  In  the 
spring  of  the  year  each  family  of  Indians  gave  one  large 
inocok  (a  kind  of  box  made  of  birch-bark)  of  sugar,  which 
Aveighed  from  eighty  to  one  liundred  pounds,  which  Father 
Dejan  would  empty  into  barrels,  and  then  go  down  to 
Detroit  with  it  to  buy  dry  goods,  returning  with  cloth  with 
which  to  clothe  his  Indian  children.  Eev.  Mr.  Dejan  did 
not  say  Mass  on  week  «.'"ys,  only  on  Sundays.  He  visited 
the  Indians  a  good  deal  during  the  week  days,  purposely 
to  inst"uct  them  in  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  white 
man,  ordering  things  generally  how  to  be  done  and  how 
the  women  should  do  their  domestic  duties,  not  work  out 
of  doors,  and  take  good  care  of  what  belonged  to  their 
household." 

In  his  letters  to  F.  Kichard,  three  of  which  are  pub- 
lished in  the  annals  of  the  Leopoldine  Society,  Rev. 
Dejean  says  that  he  baptized  two  hundred  and  twenty-four 
Indians,  many  of  w^hom  were  adults.  His  health  being 
]ioor,  he  left  Arbre  Croche  towards  the  end  of  the  year 
1830  and  returned  to  France. 


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■:!■ 


CirAPTEI?    X. 

STATI-;    OF    CATHUI-RITV     IX     TIIK     UNITED    HTATKS    AT    TItK 
TIMt:  OF   BAKAtiAS  ARKIVAL  IN  OUR  COUNTRY  IN   1830. 


In  178^3  Great  Britain  acknowledged  tlie  independence 
of  the  original  thirteen  colonies,  which  then  formed  the 
Minted  States  of  America.  They  were  bounded  on  the 
north  by  Canada,  on  the  south  by  Florida  and  the  Spanish 
territory  along  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  on  the  west  by  the 
Mississippi  River.  Later  on  Spain  ceded  Florida,  and 
France  Louisiana  to  the  L'nited  States.  At  a  still  later 
date  Texas,  Xew  Mexico  and  the  Pacific  country  were 
added  to  her  domain. 

Before  the  Revolution  of  177(5  there  were  but  very 
few  Catliolics  in  the  thirteen  colonies  and  these  were  con- 
fined principally  to  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania.  Bishop 
England  says  that  in  1783,  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution, 
there  were  probably  not  one  hundred  Catholics  between 
the  Potomac  and  Florida.  Out  of  a  total  population  of 
3,000,000  in  the  L^nited  States  at  that  time  there  were 
but  25,000  to  30,000  Catholics,  with  about  forty  priests, 
of  whom  one-half  were  Jesuits.  The  far  greater  number 
of  these  people  were  poor  farmers — in  Maryland — and 
laborers  in  the  principal  cities,  Irish  and  German  immi- 
grants from  Euro})e.  They  were  a  persecuted,  despiKe<l 
and  barely  tolerated  class  of  people.  Prior  to  the  Revolu- 
tion the  statute  books  of  almost  all  the  original  thirteen 
colonies  contained  odious  laws  against  Catholics.  After 
the  Revolution  these  anti-Catholic  laws  were  gradually 
repealed.     This  was  partly  due  to  the  fact  that  Catholics 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  IN  18.m     65 

liiul  fought  gallantly  side  by  side  with  their  l*rotcstant 
fellow-soldiers  in  tlie  great  struggle  for  libf^rty  and  inde- 
pendence. .Moreover,  it  eould  not  be  denied  that  the 
coNmists  would  never  have  achieved  their  independence 
had  not  Catholic  France  helped  them  in  the  hour  of 
supreme  need.  Another  circumstance  aided  this  revulsion 
of  feeling  towards  the  Catholic  Church.  About  the  middle 
of  the  present  century  thousands  u[)on  thousands  of  Catho- 
lic immigrants  froni  Ireland  and  Germany  pouretl  into 
our  country,  settling  principally  in  the  Eastern,  Middle 
and  Western  States.  The  American  peo])le  gradually 
became  more  and  more  ac(puiinte(l  with  these  [)e(>ple,  their 
religious  princijdes,  their  industrious  and  law-abiding 
ways,  and  so  })rejudic(5  and  bigotry  gave  place  to  a  more 
liberal  and  enlightened  attitude  towards  their  Catholic 
fellow-citizens.  At  one  time,  it  is  true,  the  Know  Xoth- 
ings,  and  very  recently  the  American  Protective  Associa- 
tion, endeavored  to  rekindle  the  fire  of  bigotry  and  blind 
hatred  against  Catholics,  but  with  poor  success,  for  such 
anti-Catholic  movements  are  t(Kj  much  at  variance  with 
the  tolerant  and  enlightened  sentiments  of  the  great  mass 
of  our  American  people  of  to-day.  The  attem])t  to  trans- 
plant Irish  and  Canadian  Orangeism  to  American  soil  was 
a  failure. 

Prior  to  1700  the  Catholics  of  the  original  thirteen 
colonies  were  subject  to  the  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  of 
the  Vicar-Apostolic  of  London,  England.  Tn  1790  the 
See  of  Baltimore  was  erected  and  Rt.  Rev.  John  Carroll 
was  consecrated  first  Bishop  of  the  United  States  in  the 
Chapel  of  Lulworth-Castle,  England.  The  n\miber  of 
Catholics  kept  on  increasing,  and  so  in  1808  the  dio<?eses 
of  l^ew  York,  Boston,  Philadelphia  and  Bardstown  were 
erected,  and  Baltimore  made  an  Archbishopric  md  the 
^ietropolitan  See  of  the  United  States.  In  the  South 
Catholicity  made  but  little  progress;  in  1796  the  total 


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number  of  Catholics,  exclusive  of  Florida  and  Louisiana, 
was  about  one  thousand. 

The  archdiocese  of  Baltimore  comprised,  in  1830, 
Maryland,  Virginia  and  the  District  of  Columbia.  Mary- 
land contained  a  Catholic  population  of  70,000.  They 
were,  as  a  rule,  poor  in  earthly  goods,  but  good,  practical 
Catholics.  Virginia  had  4,000,  and  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia 1,000,  making  a  total  of  75,000  for  the  archdiocese. 
At  Emmetsburg  was  the  mother-house  of  the  Sisters  of 
Charity,  in  Georgetown  a  Convent  of  the  Visitation,  and 
in  Baltimore  another  of  Carmelite  nuns.  It  was  in  St. 
Mary's  County  that  Lord  Baltimore  started  his  Catholic 
colonv  in  1632.  The  Catholics  in  this  and  St.  Charles 
County  were  poor  and  their  land  unproductive.  Their 
churches  were  cheap,  wooden  structures,  attended  occa- 
sionally by  priests  from  other  parts,  as  the  people  were 
unable  to  support  a  resident  priest.  In  the  District  of 
Columbia  there  were  some  Catholics  at  Washington, 
Georgetown,  and  Alexandria.  Washington  had  two 
churches,  one  of  them  large,  the  other  small.  In  George- 
town were  likewise  two  churches  and  a  Jesuit  college. 
Out  of  a  total  population  of  1,211,272  in  Virginia  in 
1832,  scarcely  4,000  were  Catholics.  Most  Rev.  JaiT^es 
Whitfield  hnd  charge  of  the  archdiocese,  1828-1834. 

One  of  the  foremost  dioceses  of  the  United  States  in 
1832  was  that  of  Philadelphia.  The  Catholic  population 
of  the  city  amounted  to  25,000  out  of  a  total  of  160,000. 
It  had  five  churches,  four  large  and  one  small.  The 
diocese  had  fifty  churches,  thirty-eight  priests,  and  a 
Catholic  population  of  upwards  of  100,000.  It  was  under 
the  care  of  Rt.  Rev.  H.  Conwell,  with  Rt.  Rev.  Francis 
P.  Kenrick  as  Coadjutor,  consecrated  in  1830  Bishop  of 
Arath.  In  Pittsburgh  was  a  convent  of  Poor  Clares,  and 
a  small  clerical  seminary  in  Philadelphia.  There  were 
flourishing  congregations  in  Lancaster,  Elizabethtown, 
O.earfield,  Shippeville,  Pittsburgh,  etc. 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  IN  1830.     67 

The  diocese  of  New  York,  erected  in  1808,  was  under 
the  care  of  Kt.  Rev.  John  Du  Bois,  1826-1842;  it 
embraced  the  states  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey.  In 
1832  New  York  City  had  30,000  Catholics  out  of  a  total 
population  of  200,000.  Many  of  these  Catholics  were 
rich  and  influential,  but  the  far  greater  number  were  poor 
immigrants  from  almost  every  country  of  Europe.  In 
1783  there  was  not  a  single  Catholic  Church  in  the  city, 
nor  any  Catholic  priest  anywhere  in  the  state.  The  oldest 
church,  St.  Peter's,  built  with  funds  collected  in  Cuba 
and  South  America,  was  erected  some  time  between  1784 
and  1790.  In  1832  there  were  four  large  churches  in  New 
York  City,  also  one  in  Brooklyn,  dedicated  to  St.  James. 
There  were  also  some  schools  in  charge  of  Sisters  of 
Charity  and  an  orphan  asylum.  In  Albany  -were  many 
Catholics,  who  had  a  large  church,  an  orphan  asylum  and 
a  school.  The  diocese  had  about  thirty  priests,  with  as 
many  churches.  Out  of  a  total  population  of  2,073,987 
in  New  York  and  New  Jersey  there  were  about  80,000 
Catholics. 

The  diocese  of  Boston,  erected  in  1808,  was  in  charge 
of  Rt.  Rev.  Benedict  Jos.  Fenwick,  consecrated  in  1825. 
At  that  time  there  were  but  four  priests  in  the  diocese,, 
which  embraced  all  the  New  England  States.  In  1832  the 
number  of  priests  had  increased  to  twenty.  The  first 
Bishop  of  Boston  was  Rt.  Rev.  John  Lefevre  de  Cheverus, 
afterwards  Archbishop  of  Bordeaux  in  France  and  Car- 
dinal. Besides  the  Cathedral,  there  was  a  small  chapel 
in  South  Boston  and  a  nice  church  and  Ursuline  Convent 
in  Charlestown.  The  latter  was  soon  after  destroyed  by 
a  fanatical  mob.  The  Catholic  Intelligencer  was  pub- 
lished in  Boston  and  the  Catholic  Press  in  Hartford.  In 
Maine  were  manv  Catholic  Indians,  whose  forefathers  had 
been  converted  by  Gabriel  Dreuillettes,  S.  J.,  and  other 
Jesuit  missionaries  of  the  seventeenth  century.    The  total 


t-; 


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68 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


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population  of  Xew  England  in  1830  was  1,960,015,  of 
whom  a  little  over  15,000  were  Catholics. 

The  diocese  of  Bardstown  was  erected  by  Pope  Pius 
VII.  in  1808,  and  its  tirst  Bishop,  Kt.  Kev.  B.  Flaget,  a 
Sulpieian,  consecrated  by  B.  Carroll  in  1801).  In  1832 
Bardstown  contained  a  large  Cathedral,  a  college  and  a 
seminary.  There  was  also  a  Dominican  monastery  at  St. 
Rose,  and  nearby  a  convent  of  Dominican  Sisters,  of  whom 
fifteen  were  professed  members  of  their  Order.  In  Naza- 
reth, about  three  miles  from  Bardstown,  was  a  convent 
with  seventy  Sisters  and  one  hundred  boarding  scholars. 
The  community  had  charge  of  several  Catholic  schools 
throughout  the  diocese.  There  was,  moreover,  a  convent 
of  Loretto  Sisters  at  Loretto,  Washington  County,  con- 
taining one  hundred  professed  Sisters.  The  diocese 
embraced  Kentucky  and  Tennessee ;  a  part  of  Indiana  and 
Illinois  was  for  a  time  attached  to  the  diocese  as  a  mis- 
sionary district.  Bishop  Flaget  had  a  Coadjutor,  Rt.  Rev. 
Bishop  David.  There  were  about  twenty  priests  and 
twenty-five  churches  in  the  diocese.  Out  of  a  total  popu- 
lation of  1,872,923  there  were  about  25,000  Catholics 
belonging  to  Bardstown  and  5,000  in  Illinois  belonging 
to  St.  Louis. 

The  diocese  of  Cincinnati,  erected  in  1821,  had  for 
ten  years  Rt.  Rev.  Edward  Fenwick  as  Bishop.  Out  of  a 
total  population  of  30,000  in  1830,  Cincinnati  had  about 
6,000  Catholics.  The  diocese  embraced  the  State  of  Ohio, 
with  Michigan  and  the  ISTorthwest  attached  as  a  missionary 
district.  There  were  about  eighteen  priests  and  as  many 
churches.  In  Somerset,  Perry  County,  O.,  there  was  a 
Dominican  monastery,  St.  Joseph's,  and  a  convent  of 
Dominican  Sisters,  St.  Mary's.  The  Catholic  population 
of  Ohio,  Michigan  and  Northwestern  Territory  in  1830 
was  a  little  over  32,000,  of  whom  almost  one-half  belonged 
to  Michigan  and  the  Northwest.  There  were  large  con- 
gregations of  French,   Germans,   Irish  and  Indians   at 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  IN  1830.     69 


Detroit,  Green  Bay  and  other  phces.  In  1833  Detroit 
was  made  an  Episcopal  See,  with  Rt.  Rev.  Frederick  Rese 
as  its  first  Bishop. 

The  diocese  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  was  erected  in  1826. 
It  embraced  Missouri  and  Arkansas,  with  about  one-half 
of  Illinois — the  western  part  along  the  Mississippi  River 
— attached  as  a  missionary  district.  Its  first  Bishop  was 
Rt.  Rev.  Joseph  Rosati,  consecrated  July  18th,  1826 ;  died 
at  Rome  September  25th,  1843.  The  diocese  was  immense 
in  extent.  On  the  north  it  extended  on  the  western  side 
of  the  Mississippi  to  British  America,  on  the  south  to 
Texas  and  New  Mexico,  and  on  the  west  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  The  far  greater  part  of  the  Catholic  population 
in  1830  were  of  French  descent,  besides  some  Irish  and 
Germans  in  Missouri  and  Illinois,  and  some  Catholic 
Indiaiis  in  the  far  west.  The  Catholics  numbered  about 
40,000,  of  whom  over  3,000  lived  in  St.  Louis,  which  had 
then  (1830)  a  total  population  of  8,000.  About  three- 
fourths  of  the  Catholics  in  the  city  spoke  French.  The 
diocese  contained  the  following  institutions  and  missions : 
A  convent  of  Ladies  of  the  Sacred  Heart,  with  about  one 
hundred  boarding  pupils ;  a  hospital  in  charge  of  Sisters 
of  Charity;  a  Jesuit  college  with  eighty  students.  The 
above  institutions  were  in  the  city  of  St.  Louis.  There 
was  a  diocesan  seminary  at  Perryville  (Barrens),  in 
charge  of  the  Congregation  of  the  Missions,  with  one  hun- 
dred students;  also  a  Catholic  congregation  of  200  fami- 
lies with  a  resident  priest.  At  Ste.  Genevieve  there  was 
a  French-speaking  congregation  of  2,000  souls.  At  St. 
Michael's  there  were  200  Catholics  v/ith  a  stationary 
priest.  Carondelet  had  140  families  of  French  descent. 
St.  Ferdinand,  at  Florissant,  had  eighty  families,  mostly 
French,  with  three  Jesuit  Fathers.  There  was  likewise 
a  convent  with  novitiate  of  the  Ladies  of  the  Sacred 
Heart.  At  St.  Charles  were  about  one  hundred  families, 
mostly  French,  attended  by  two  Jesuit  Fathers;  also  a 


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70 


RT.  BEV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


school  in  charge  of  the  Ladies  of  the  Sacred  Heart.  On 
the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  was  Portage  des  Sioux,  a 
French  village  with  forty  families,  attended  from  St. 
Charles.  Another  small  settlement,  La  Dardenne,  con- 
taining but  eighteen  families,  was  also  attended  from  St. 
Charles.  Cote  Sansdessein,  another  small  French  mission, 
ninety  miles  from  St.  Louis,  had  sixty  Catholic  families. 
La  Vieille  Mine  (in  the  lead-mine  district)  had  a  church 
and  resident  priest. 

In  Illinois  were :  La  Prairie  du  Rocher,  a  French  vil- 
lage with  forty  Catholic  families  and  a  church  built  by 
Father  Murin,  the  last  Jesuit  missionary  there  before  the 
suppression  of  the  Order  in  1775.  Chare  Settlement  con- 
tained a  considerable  number  of  English-speaking  Catho- 
lics. Kaskaskia  was  an  old  French-Indian  mission  station 
dating  from  Father  Marquette's  time.  In  1830  there  were 
but  few  Catholic  Indians  left;  the  French  population  was 
about  1,400.  Prairie  du  Chien  (Wis.)  and  La  Riviere 
aux  fievres  contained  about  500  Catholics.  Langamo, 
about  one  hundred  miles  from  St.  Louis,  had  forty  Catho- 
lic families. 

The  diocese  of  Charleston  was  erected  in  1820,  and 
its  first  Bishop,  Rt.  Rev.  John  England,  consecrated  Sep- 
tember 21st,  1820.  The  diocese  embraced  North  and 
South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  with  about  11,000  Catholics 
out  of  a  total  of  1,836,432  in  1830.  There  were  eleven 
priests.  Charleston  had  about  5,000  Catholics,  many  of 
whom  were  negro  slaves.  There  were  two  churches  of 
moderate  size,  the  Cathedral  and  another,  in  the  city.  The 
oldest  Catholic  paper  in  the  United  States,  the  United 
States  Miscellaney,  w^as  published  in  Charleston.  It 
began  to  appear  about  1820.  The  Franciscan  Fathers  in 
Superior  have  one  small  volume  of  the  above-named  paper, 
dated  1824. 

Mobile,  erected  as  Vicariate- Apostolic  in  1824  and 
made  an  Episcopal  See  in  1829,  comprised  Alabama  and 


THE  OATHOLIO  CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  IN  1830.     71 

Florida.  When  Spain  ceded  Florida  to  the  United  States 
most  of  the  Spanish  clergy  and  people  left  the  country, 
taking  along  almost  everything  of  value  belonging  to  the 
Church.  The  first  Bishop  of  this  diocese  was  Rt.  Rev. 
Michael  Portier,  consecrated  in  1826.  With  funds  col- 
lected in  Europe  he  built  a  college  and  seminary,  contain- 
ing, in  1832,  about  one  hundred  students  and  twelve  semi- 
narians. There  were  but  six  or  seven  priests  in  the 
diocese,  which  contained  about  8,000  Catholics  out  of  a 
total  population  of  343,931  in  both  states. 


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CHAPTER  XI. 


DESCRIPTION  AND  HISTORY   OF  BARAGA  S   BIRTHPLACE. 

We  enter  now  upon  the  life  and  labors  of  saintly 
Bishop  Baraga,  the  man  chosen  by  Divine  Providence  to 
take  up  and  bring  to  a  successful  issue — after  a  lapse  of 
almost  a  century — the  glorious  work  of  the  grand  old 
Jesuit  missionaries  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  cen- 
turies. The  latter  had  labored  most  zealously  and  self- 
sacrificingl\  among  the  Indians  of  the  great  ]!s^orthwest 
But  only  partial  success  crowned  their  efforts.  The  Indian 
was  not  as  yet  ripe  for  conversion.  Polygamy  was  one  of 
the  great  impediments  to  his  conversion.  This  great  evil 
had  gradually  and  almost  entirely  disappeared  prior  to 
Baraga's  arrival  in  the  Indian  country.  Moreover,  the 
fame  of  the  French  "Black-robes"  as  men,  who  loved  the 
poor  Indian,  who  deeply  sympathized  with  him  in  the 
cruel  wrongs  he  suffered  at  the  hands  of  his  crafty  and 
powerful  white  brother,  and  who  labored  so  disinterestedly 
for  his  spiritual  and  temporal  good:  the  memory,  I  say, 
of  Marquette,  Allouez,  Du  Jaunay,  Gabriel  Richard, 
Badin  and  others ;  all  these  memories  and  traditions,  faith- 
fully handed  down  from  father  to  son,  paved  the  way  for 
Baraga  and  his  noble  co-laborers,  such  as  Bishop  Mrak 
and  Fathers  Pierz,  Skolla,  Van  den  Broek  and  others,  to 
work  successfully  at  the  conversion  of  the  Indian  nations 
dwelling  near  the  great  lakes. 

Before  entering,  however,  upon  the  life  and  apostolic 
labors  of  B.  Baraga,  we  beg  leave  to  say  a  few  words  about 
his  birthplace. 

The  parish  of  Dobernig  (Slov.  Dobernice),  in  which 


m\ 


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<:! 


il'n 


III 


ll'li 


bara(;a'h  birth. 


7;i 


the  illustrious  suhjoct  of  our  narnitivc  was  l)oru,  is  siruatixl 
in  tho  (li(M'('se  of  Laihacli,  Intorkrain  (Carni  ►la),  Austria. 
It  lies  ill  a  dee]),  arid  vallcv.  Tlie  inliahitaiits  often  sutler 
from  the  want  of  water,  as  neither  river  nor  ereek  tlow 
through  it.  lleiiee  the  whole  eour.trv,  from  Tretfeii  to 
Kibiiica,  i:  distance  of  U])war(ls  of  thirty  miles,  is  ])opu- 
larly  called  "Suha  Krajina,"  which  signities  in  Kny,lisli: 
Arid  Krain.  The  inhabitants  of  this  waterless  district, 
"who  are  mostly  farmers,  depend  upon  rain  for  their  sui)ply 
of  water,  which,  falliiijL!;  on  the  roofs  of  their  houses  and 
barns,  is  gathered  and  conducted  l>y  means  of  gutters  and 
conduit-pi])es  into  cisterns.  in  times  of  great  drought 
they  are  obliged  to  haul  water  v.i  barrels  from  the  Iviver 
Krika  or  Temenica.  The  countrv  is  not  very  beautiful, 
but  the  peoj)le  are  staunch  C^itholica  and  very  pious,  as  a 
rule. 

The  ])arish  of  Dobernig  is  very  ancient,  as  parish 
])riests  were  stationed  there  in  the  fourteenth  century. 
For  a  time  it  was  in  charge  of  the  religious  of  the  (!!istbr- 
cian  monastery  of  Sittich,  founded  A.  1).  ll^JT).  This 
monastery  is  about  six  miles  from  IKibornig.  It  was  secu- 
larized  in  the  year  1784.  For  some  time  Fathers  of  the 
(^onventual  Branch  of  the  Franciscan  Order  had  charge 
of  the  parish.  However,  most  of  the  time  it  was  attended 
by  secnlar  priests.  Dclbernig  has  a  population  of  2,400 
souls,  and  is  in  care  of  a  parish  priest  and  his  assistant. 

The  parish  Church  is  dedicated  to  St.  George,  Mar^yr. 
It  has  two  side  altars,  one  of  the  Dolorous  Mother,  and 
the  other  of  St.  Anthony  of  Padua.  In  front  of  the  latter 
there  is  a  subterraneous  vault,  in  which  Baraga's  maternal 
relativer,,  the  de  Jencic,  are  buried. 

The  parish  of  Dobernig  has  eight  station  c]ia]>els 
(chapels  of  ease),  namely : 


n: 


1. 


St.  Ann,  in  Sniaver,  in  the  midst  of  vineyard-. 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  in  Dobrava. 


II 


74 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


I 


111 


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k;  ,1    •' 
I  •!  (if 


.'J.     St.  AgnoH,  V.  M.,  in  Knezjavus.  > 

4.  St.  Peter,  in  Korita. 

T).      Holy  Oosfl,  on  Mount  Liaec. 

0.     St.  MauruH,  .M.,  in  Sniaver. 

7.     St.  Anthony,  tlio  Hermit,  in  Selca. 

5.  IIolv  Ghost,  in  Tahovee. 

For  Hevernl  years  a  curious  report  has  heen  circulating 
among  the  })eo])le  of  J)("»hernig  and  vicinity  that  as  soon  as 
Bislio))  Baraga  wouhl  "he  nuule  a  saint,"  canonized,  his 
renlains  wouhl  1k'  hrought  from  their  present  resting  place 
in  America  and  he  huried  under  the  high  altar  of  the 
Holy  Ooss  Church  on  Mount  Lisec.  Perhaps  so!  God 
knows ! 

Bjiraga  was  horn  in  the  castle  of  Malavas  (German: 
Klcindorf),  as  hefore  stated,  in  the  parisli  of  Dobernig. 
As  to  the  history  of  this  castle,  Baron  Weikhard  Valvasor 
(+1()1).*3)  relates  as  follows  in  his  work,  "Renown  of  the 
Dtd^edom  Krain"  (Book  XI.,  pages  308-309)  : 

''In  the  parish  of  Dcihernig  there  used  to  stand  on  a 
mountain  a  very  ancient  castle,  called  Kozjek.  At  present 
(1083)  only  a  few  ruins  remain.  During  the  unhappy 
times  caused  by  the  irruption  of  the  Turks  in  the  four- 
teenth, fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries,  this  castle  was 
often  attacked  by  the  Mussulmans,  but  never  captured. 
Towards  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  castle 
Kozjek  Avas  abandoned  by  its  owner.  Count  Auersperg, 
and  in  consequence  Count  Wolfgang  Engelbert  von  Auers- 
]ierg  built — c.  1670 — in  the  valley  a  smaller  castle  in  order 
to  live  more  convenientlv.  The  materials  of  the  ancient 
castle  Kozjek  were  removed  to  Malavas  (Kleindorf). 

''After  the  death  of  W.  E.,  Count  of  Auersperg,  his 
brother,  Johann  Weikhard,  Prince  of  Auersperg,  inherited 
said  castle,  and  after  his  death  it  passed  over  to  his  son 
Ferdinand,  Prince  of  Auersperg." 

In  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  tamilj 
Morautscher  (Slov.  Moravcer)  bought  said  castle.     After 


babaoa's  birth. 


75 


the  death  of  Franz  Morautscher,  March  .'Jd,  1742,  the 
castle  was  purchased  by  Josef  Karl  Kern,  who  a  few  years 
later,  c.  1750,  sold  it  to  Bernard  Anton  do  Jencic,  Baraga's 
maternal  grandfather.  In  this  castle  were  born  unto  Ber- 
nard A.  and  Katharina  do  Jencic  the  following  children: 

1.     AnU>n  Daniel  Josef,  born  May  31,  175G. 
'J.     Maria  Theresia,  born  October  24,  1757. 
o.     Maria  Katharina  Josefa,  \n\  March  21,   1759. 
(Mother  of  Bishop  Baraga.) 

4.     Anton  Bernard  Josef,  born  May  22,  17C0. 

Maria  Elisabeth,  born  January  7,  1702. 

Josef  Stanislaus  Anton,  born  May  17,  1763. 

Ferdinand   Josef   Michael,    born    September    24, 


o. 
0. 

7. 
1764. 

8. 
J). 


Francisca  liaveria,  born  Jsi^vember  G,  1765. 
Wilhelm  Vinconz  Ignaz,  born  March  9,  1768. 


In  the  castle  Malavas,  in  which  Baraga  was  born,  was 
a  very  beautiful  chapel,  served  by  chaplains  in  the  employ 
of  Bernard  Anton  Jencic,  who  also  acted  as  tutors  to  his 
numerous  children.  They  were:  In  1753,  Christophorus 
Tobonneth;  in  1763,  Georg  Zelenec;  later  on,  Valentin 
Terbar,  who  died  at  the  age  of  thirty,  in  Malavas,  and  who 
in  the  Records  of  the  place  is  described :  "Moribus  et  vita 
praeclainis."  He  was  buried  under  the  altar  of  St. 
Anthony  of  Padua  in  the  parish  Church  of  Dobernig. 
From  1780  to  1783  Anton  Bolka  was  stationed  as  chaplain 
in  the  castle  Malavas.  He  afterwards  became  parish  priest 
of  Dobernig,  1800-1827.  The  family  Jencic  were  also  in 
constant  friendly  intercourse  with  the  inmates  of  the  Cis- 
tercian Abbey  of  Sittich.  From  all  this  it  is  easy  to  be 
seen  that  the  children  of  Bernard  Jencic  were  brought  up 
very  piously  and  that  they  received  a  thoroughly  religious 
education.  Thus  young  Baraga  inherited  from  his  dear 
able  all  his  lifetime. 


ii  •■ 


76 


RT.  BEY.  FREDERIC  BABAOA. 


•  I 


m 


S     -5l':'i; 


After  the  death  of  Bernard  Anton  Jencic,  his  daughter, 
Maria  Katharina  Josefa,  mother  of  Bishop  Baraga, 
inherited  the  castle  Malavas  from  her  father.  She  was 
rich,  but  Johann  Nepomuc  Baraga,  whom  she  married  on 
the  10th  of  May,  1792,  seems  to  have  been  a  man  of  but 
moderate  means,  as  he  was  but  overseer  of  the  castle  of 
jS'^eudegg.  Two  years  after  the  birth  of  Frederic  Baraga, 
they  sold  the  castle  Malavas  to  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Santo  Treo,  whose  grandson,  Julius  Treo,  still  owns  it. 
Baraga's  parents  bought  in  Treffen  a  larger  and  more 
beautiful  castle  in  171)9,  situated  about  two  miles  from 
Malavas.  After  the  death  of  his  father,  in  1812,  young 
Frederic  inherited  this  castle.  Subsequently,  when  pre- 
paring for  the  priesthood  in  the  clerical  seminary  at 
Laibach,  he  donated  freely  this  grand  mansion  with 
adjoining  lands  to  his  sister  Amalia,  not  even  reserving 
an  annual  allowance  for  himself.  He  could  therefore 
truly  say  with  the  royal  prophet :  "Dominus  pars  haeredi- 
tatis  mcae  et  calicis  mei ;  tu  es  qui  restitues  haereditatem 
meam  mihi" — The  Lord  is  the  portion  of  my  inheritance 
and  of  my  chalice;  it  is  thou  who  wilt  restore  to  me  my 
inheritance."     (Ps.  xv,  v.  5.) 


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ntnf -rn'  fiV  niilill 


CHAPTER  XII. 


• 


BIBTH  AND  EARLY  EDUCATION  OF  FREDERIC  BARAGA  ;  DEATH 
OF  HIS  PARENTS  ;  HE  STUDIES  AT  LAIBACH  AND  VIENNA  *, 
RESOLVES  TO  ENTER  THE  PRIESTHOOD;  STUDIES  AT  THE 
CLERICAL  SEMINARY  AT  LAIBACH  AND  IS  ORDAINED 
THERE. 


li 


2 


In  the  Register  of  Marriages  in  the  parish  (^hurch  of 
Dobernig  we  find  the  following  entry : 

^^"On  the  16th  of  May,  1792,  Johann  Xepomuc 
Baraga,  widower,  overseer  of  the  castle  of  ^eudegg,  of 
the  parish  of  N^eudegg,  was  united  in  marriage  to  his 
sponse  Katharina,  virginal  and  legitimate  daughter  of 
Bernard  Jencic,  of  Kleindorf  (Malavas),  in  the  parish 
of  Dobernig,  in  the  presence  of  Anton  Lakner  and  Joseph 
Wnzeli,  witnesses,  by  Thomas  Zajec,  parish  priest  of 
Dobernig." 

Five  children  were  born  of  this  marriage : 

1.  Maria,  born  and  died  March  1.'3,  1703. 

2.  Vincenz  Johann  Nepomnc,  born  January  23, 
1704 ;  died  February  24,  1794. 

3.  Amalia,  born  July  16,  1705. 

4.  Irenaeus  FriedricL,  born  June  20,  1797. 

5.  Antonia,  born  February  4,  1803. 

Irenaeus  Frederic  Baraga,  the  subject  of  our  narrative, 

*"Die  IG  MaiJ,  1702,  D.  Joannes  Nepomucenus  Baraga,  viduus, 
praefectus  in  arce  Neudegg,  Parochiae  Neudegg,  cum  sua  sponsa 
Catharina,  Dni.  Bernardi  Jeneic,  fil.  leg.  coelibe  ex  Kleindorf,  Paro- 
chiae Dobernicensis  coram  testibus  D.  Antonio  Lakner  et  D.  Josepho 
Wiizeli  copulatus  est  ab  A.  R.  D.  Thoma  Zajec,  parocho  Dobern." 


n 

•li 


ft 

1:> 


78 


BT.  BEY.  FBEDEBIO   BABAQA. 


'*.i '". 


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was  born,  as  the  above  shows,  on  the  29th  of  June,  A.  D. 
1797,  in  the  castle  of  Malavas,  or  Kleindorf,  in  the  parish 
of  Dobernig,  diocese  of  Laibach,  Unterkrain  (Lower  Car- 
niola),  a  Slavonic  province  of  the  Austrian  Empire.  The 
full  name  of  his  father  was  Johann  Kepomuc  Baraga,  and 
that  of  his  mother  Maria  Katharina  Josefa  Jencic.  As  in 
the  above-cited  matrimonial  record,  the  first  name  of  his 
mother,  Maria,  was  dropped,  so  also  young  Baraga  never 
used  in  after  life  his  first  name,  Ironaeus,  neither  did  he 
ever  use'  it  in  any  of  his  official  documents  as  priest  or 
bishop.  Hence  we  will  also  drop  it  and  simply  call  him 
Frederic,  as  he  alwavs  did  himself.  As  the  name  of  his 
parents  indicate,  F.  Baraga  was  a  Si^^vonian  by  birth  and 
not  a  German,  as  is  stated  in  some  magazines. 

In  the  Baptismal  Record  of  Dobernig  we  find  the  fol- 
lowing entry : 

*"0n  the  29th  of  June,  1797,  was  baptized  Irenaeus 
Frederic  Baraga,  legitimate  son  of  Johann  Nepomuc 
Baraga  and  Katharina  Jencic  (pron.  Jentschitsch).  The 
sponsors  were  Andreas  Zurbi  and  Juliana  Abulver,  by 
Anton  Herman,  assistant  priest." 

Young  Frederic  had  the  inestimable  blessing  of  having 
deeply  pious  and  God-fearing  parents.  His  early  educa- 
tion w^as  in  the  hands  of  pious  house-chaplains,  who 
instructed  him  in  the  first  rudiments  of  learning  and  reli- 
gion. His  mother  being  very  pious,  instilled  into  the 
hearts  of  her  children  from  their  earliest  years  the  love 
of  God,  a  loathing  of  sin,  and  great  compassion  for  the 
poor  and  suffering.  Young  Frederic  was  thus  brought  up 
under  most  favorable  circumstances,  under  the  vigilant 
eyes  of  pious  parents  and  tutors,  away  from  the  seductions 
of  the  world  and  from  contact  with  bad  children. 

*"Die  20  Jnnii,  1797,  baptizatus  est  Irenaeus  Fridericus  Baraga, 
filius  legiiimus  Dni.  Joannis  Nepomuceni  Baraga  et  D.  Catharinae 
Jencic.  P^itrini  D.  Andreas  Zurbi  et  D.  Juliana  Abulner,  per  cooner- 
atorem  Antonium  Herman." 


BARAGA'S   YOUTH. 


79 


In  the  year  1806,  at  the  age  of  nine,  Frederic  was  sent 
by  his  parents  to  Laibach.  There,  under  a  private  tutor 
engaged  for  him,  he  studied  the  main  branches  that  were 
taught  at  the  high  school  of  that  city.  Tiiis  no  doubt  was 
done  to  shield  the  innocence  of  the  pious  child,  to  keep  him 
from  coming  into  contact  with  bad  children,  who  might 
easily  sow  the  seeds  of  sin  in  his  pure,  innocent  heart. 
Under  this  private  teacher  he  made  rapid  progress  in  all 
his  studies. 

After  having  spent  two  years  at  Laibach,  his  pious 
mother  died.  Although  deprived  at  the  early  age  of  eleven 
years  of  his  dear  mother,  her  memory  never  faded  from 
his  mind.  Her  piety  and  love  were  a  source  of  most  happy 
recollections  to  his  tender  heart,  and  her  motherly  admoni- 
tions and  pious  examples  guided  him  safely  through  the 
dangers  of  his  childhood  days.  Bodily  taken  away  by 
death,  she  lived  in  his  memory  and  her  loving  spirit  accom- 
panied him  upon  all  the  ways  of  his  afterlife. 

In  the  year  1809  he  entered  the  gymnasium  at 
Laibach.  That  same  year  Napoleon  Bonaparte  took  pos- 
session of  Carniola,  Frederic's  native  land,  and  established 
the  "Kingdom  of  Illyricum."  It  remained  under  French 
rule  till  1813.  After  Napoleon's  disastrous  Russian  cam- 
paign and  his  retreat  from  Moscow,  during  which  he  lost 
almost  half  a  million  of  men,  Austria  shook  off  the  galling 
yoke  of  the  Corsican  usurper  and  with  the  help  of  other 
continental  nations  drove  him  from  his  throne  and  landed 
him  In  Elba. 

During  the  French  occupation  young  Frederic  com- 
menced to  study  French,  to  which  he  took  such  a  delight 
that  he  continued  it  even  after  the  French  had  been  driven 
from  his  native  country,,  The  knowledge  of  this  language 
was  of  great  service  to  him  during  his  long  missionary 
career  in  America.  As  he  was  the  only  son  of  the  family, 
neither  he  nor  anyone  else  could  think  otherwise  but  that 
he  would  be  in  future  the  sole  heir  of  the  domain  of 


ti  *-    '. 


i 


11 
11 


W"| 


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ir,;V 


'fi  h/i 


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fo'! 

1.  !,l 

1 

80 


RT.  REV.  FBEDERIO   BARAGA. 


Treft'cn,  especially  as  his  father,  who  died  in  1812,  trans- 
ferred them  to  him.  Hence  his  prospects  for  a  life  of 
worldly  happiness  were  all  that  conld  be  wished  for.  lie 
was  imiisually  bright,  intelligent,  gifted  with  great  talents, 
had  many  friends,  a  large  domain,  good  health,  and  the 
prospect  of  a  long  and  happy  life.  Yet  he  renounced  all 
these  worldly  advantages  to  devote  himself  to  the  service 
of  God  as  priest  and  missionary. 

After  the  death  of  his  father,  in  1812,  young  Frederic 
went  to  live  with  George  Dolinar,"^  professor  of  canon-law 
and  ecclesiastical  history  in  the  theological  department  of 
the  Laibach  Lyceum.  Ho  lived  with  this  pious  man  for 
four  years,  until  1810,  and  found  there  a  truly  Christian 
home.  The  same  order,  the  same  Christian  virtues,  which 
he  had  seen  constantly  practiced  at  the  house  of  his  dear 
parents,  were  also  prevalent  in  the  house  of  his  dear  friend 
and  ])rotector.  With  great  delight  did  young  Baraga 
often  write  in  his  letters  to  his  sister  Amalia,  of  the 
wisdom,  learning,  and  deep  piety  of  this  good  man.  It  was 
certainly  through  a  special  and  loving  arrangement  of 
Divine  Providence  that  Baraga's  youthful  days  were 
spent  under  the  best  possible  surroundings.  It  is,  after 
all,  true  that  man  is  to  a  2;reat  extent  a  creature  of  circum- 
stances.  A  child  brought  up,  as  Baraga  was,  will  in  mostly 
all  cases  be  good  and  virtuous,  whereas  another  living  in 
bad  surroundings  will  generally  turn  out  to  be  bad. 
Baraga  had  saintly  parents  and  tutors  and  he  became  a 
saintly  man  himself. 

Whilst  pursuing  his  classic  studies  at  Laibach  he 
apjilied  himself  likewise  to  other  useful  branches  of  knowl- 
edge, such  as  nmsic,  painting,  and  languages.     lie  once 

■*He  died  October  21st,  1858,  at  tlie  ripe  age  of  ninety-four  years, 
Tliough  but  a  layman,  he  was  professor  of  Canon  Law. and  Church 
history  at  the  diocesan  clerical  seminary  in  Laibach.  He  was  a  A^ery 
learned  and  pious  man,  and  wrote,  in  1837,  a  book  entitled,  "The 
Life  of  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 


babaga's  youth. 


81 


painted  a  picture  of  the  Good  Shepiierd  and  sent  it  to  his 
sister  Amalia,  writing  at  the  same  time:  "The  picture 
shows  the  Good  Shepherd  who  gave  his  life  for  his  sheep 
and  who,  when  one  of  the  hundred  is  lost,  leaves  the 
ninety-nine  and  seeks  the  lost  one  until  he  linds  it.  Do 
you  recognize  the  Good  Shepherd,  dear  Amalia  V'  Surely 
his  beloved  sister,  who  received  this  letter  and  looked  often 
at  this  picture,  of  which  her  brother  so  frequently  spoke 
in  his  subsequent  letters,  must  have  felt  then  that  he  would 
sooner  or  later  become  a  living  and  true  image  of  the  Good 
Shepherd. 

After  Frederic  Baraga  had  finished  his  course  of 
classics  at  Liabach  he  entered  the  Universitv  of  Vienna 
in  the  year  181 G,  being  then  nineteen  years  of  age.  In 
the  Austrian  metropolis  he  was  surrounded  by  dangers 
on  all  sides,  but,  thanks  to  his  early  training  and  the 
nobility  of  his  soul,  he  escaped  the  contagion  of  vice  and, 
in  the  words  of  St.  James,  "preserved  himself  unspotted 
from  the  world."  Moreover,  his  tender,  strong,  and  pure 
love  for  his  sister  Amalia  had  an  ennobling  and  purifying 
effect  on  his  young  and  sensitive  heart.  In  a  letter 
written  to  her  from  Vienna,  and  dated  May  Gth,  1811), 
he  says: 

"Xow  are  and  continue  to  be  the  consoling  source  of 
my  thoughts.  Although  my  soul  is  sometimes  engaged  in 
other  thoughts  and  finds  pleasure  in  them,  yet  my  spirit- 
ual joy  is  but  imperfect  and  weak  and  my  heart  endures 
it  only  for  a  short  time.  Sometimes  there  is  in  my  heart 
such  a  desolation  and  emptiness  that  it  can  only  be  filled 
by  raising  my  thoughts  to  God  and  His  eternal  love  and 
with  thinking  for  your  dear,  sisterly  love,  your  affection 
for  me." 

Here  Baraga  shows  his  great  affection  for  his  sister, 
but  he  guards  this  feeling  by  directing  it  towards  God. 
He  savs  in  one  of  his  letters  to  her,  "More  and  more  do 
I  understand  that  the  eternal  love  gave  me  a  heart  crav- 


s'  •     ,     'i 


82 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


ing  for  love,  and  I  also  see  what  a  great  favor  God  has 
bestowed  upon  nie  by  giving  to  my  heart  another  heart  to 
which  it  is  given  to  appreciate  the  sentiments  of  my  heart 
and  to  return  them  a  hundred  fold.  Indeed,  my  dearest 
Amalia,  if  my  heart  were  not  filled  with  the  purest  love  to 
you,  it  would  be  impossible  to  attain  to  that  high  degree  of 
holy  love,  with  which  a  Christian  soul  loves  the  eternal 
Love  (God),  for  the  ways  are  unknown  to  us,  by  which 
God's  love  draws  us  to  Himself.  God  Himself  i>ave  vou 
to  me  as  a  gift,  that  by  this  gift  He  might  remind  me  of 
His  infinite  love  to  us.  Xever  have  I  felt  love  so  strongly 
as  I  do  since  I  have  loved  vou  more  than  anvthinii"  else 
on  earth.  In  this  manner  has  earthlv  affection,  mv  love 
to  you,  in  the  designs  of  the  Almighty  and  All-wise  God, 
become  the  means  by  which  He  prepares  our  hearts  for  the 
joys  of  heaven  and  draws  us  more  and  more  to  Himself." 
Young  Baraga  was  a  great  lover  of  drawing  and  paint- 
ing. He  sometimes  spent  from  six  to  eight  hours  at  land- 
scape painting.  From  Vienna  he  sent  two  beautifully 
bound  books  with  drawings  of  his  own,  executed  with 
paint-brush  and  pen,  and  also  in  colors.  In  the  first  and 
larger  book  he  wrote  the  following  dedicatory  words: 

"Dir,  geliebte  Amalia,  zum  Andenken  von  deineni  Friedrioh." 

On  the  next  page  he  wrote : 

"Nimm  es  hin,  O  liebe,  Theme  Schwesler, 
Dieses  Denkmal  niinm  aus  meiner  Hand. 

Es  kniipft  inniger  vmd  enger,  fester 
Unser  schones,  zartes  Liebesband." 

This  book  contains  fifty-two  drawings,  all  executed  by 
himself,  some  of  them  miniatures,  representing  rustic 
scenes.  At  the  conclusion  a  flower  is  painted  with  the 
following  inscription : 

"Ziirtlich  bniderliche  Liebe 
Weihet  diese  T31ninen  dir," 

On  the  next  to  the  last  leaf  a  wreath  is  drawn  with 


babaoa's  youth. 


88 


symbols  of  the  four  seasons,  and  below  are  the  following 

words : 

"Jede  der  vier  Jahrzeiten 
Myge  Freude  dir  bereiten." 

On  the  last  leaf  are  the  following  words  in  German: 

"Gezeichnet  und  gemahlt 

von 

Friedrich  Baraga 

HOrer  der  Rechte 

An  der  hohen  Schule  zo  Wien 

im  Jahre  des  Heils 

1818. 

The  second  book  of  his  drawings  has  the  following 
title: 

"Kleinigkeiten  aus  dem  Lanschaftsfache,  gezeichnet  v.  F.  G.  B." 

It  contains  a  beautiful  poem  of  his  own  composition, 
which  we  give  in  full,  as  many  of  our  readers  may  be 
conversant  with  the  German  language : 

1.  Bist  du  ewig  fort-geschwommen, 
Himmlische  Vergangenheit  ? 
Wirst  du  nimmer  wieder  kommen, 
Nimmer  wieder,  sch<)ne  Zeit? 

2.  Durch  die  buntgeschmilckten  Fluren, 
Folgend  selbtitgewfthlten  Spuren, 
Sang  der  Hirt  der  Herde  nach. 

3.  Unschuld  alles,  was  er  dachte, 
Unschuld  alles,  was  er  machte, 
Unschuld  alles,  was  er  sprach. 

4.  Wo  er  immer  hingekommen, 
War  er  freundlich  aufgenommen, 
War  er  unter  Freundes  Dach. 

6.    Alle  liebt  'er  ja  wie  Brtider,  > 

Die  geliebten  liebten  wieder, 
Denn  die  Herzen  waren  eins. 

6.    Doch  der  nachtumflorten  Raume 
Fiirst  zerknickt  die  zarten  Keime 
Dieses  g5ttlichen  Vereins. 


t    *      ! 


■m4 


M\^ 


84  bt.  rev.  fbbdebio  babaqa. 

7.  Tilckisch  fUhrte  er  den  Milden 
Au9  den  duftenden  Getilden 
Seines  blumenreichen  Hains. 

8.  Lehrte  ihn  nach  Schatzen  tiachten, 
Zeigte  ihm  des  Berges  Schachten, 
Wo  versteckt  der  Demant  glUht; 

9.  Liess  ihn  Gold  und  Perlen  schauen, 
Lehrte  ihm  Palilste  bauen, 

Und  sieh  da — die  Unachuld  flieht! 

10.  Nach  der  Flur  zu  ihren  Lieben, 
Die  allein  noch  treu  geblieben, 
Sie  avis  Marmorsaulen  zieht. 

11.  Und  in  ihrer  reinen  Mitte, 
In  der  anspruchslosen  HUtte, 
Wohnt  sie,  selber  anspruehslos. 

12.  In  der  Stadte  Dunst.  evieren 
Lasst  sie  SUnden  triumphieren, 
Ruht  in  der  Gefilde  Schoss. 

13.  Den  sie  rein  und  wiirdig  findet, 
Sie  mit  reinster  Lust  umwindet, 
Die  aus  ihrem  FUllhorn  floss. 

14.  Und  auch  dich,  hat  sie  umschlungen, 
Dii  auch  ist  ihr  Ruf  erklungen, 
Dich  auch  sie  im  Arme  halt. 

x5.    D'rum  hab'  ich  die  Heimath-Scenen 
Dieser  Hehren,  dieser  Schonen, 
Dir  zum  Denkmal  auserwahlt. 

16.     Nimm  sie  hin  die  Heimath-Scenen 
Dieser  Hehren,  dieser  Schonen, 
Die  dich  fest  im  Arme  halt. 

At  Vienna,  Baraga  studied  law,  rhetoric,  aesthetics, 
English,  French,  and  Italian,  all  of  which  were  of  great 
use  to  him  in  after-life.  He  also  took  good  care  of  his 
health  by  shunning  all  youthful  excesses,  abstaining  from 
wine  and  alcoholic  liquors,  and  by  undertaking  long  jour- 
neys on  foot  during  the  seasons  of  vacation.  Thus  he 
walked  on  foot  all  the  way  from  Vienna  to  Pesth,  walking 


1 1 


babaoa'b  youth. 


85 


through  Moravia,  Bohemia,  aud  Bavaria.  It  was  thus  he 
prepared  himself  for  his  future  apostolate  in  the  wilds 
of  America.  Both  body  and  soul  were  trained  for  the 
great  work  in  store  for  him. 

The  thought  of  embracing  the  sacerdotal  state  entered 
his  mind  gradually  during  the  time  when  he  was  pursuing 
his  studies  at  the  University  of  Vienna,  and  seems  to  date 
from  the  year  1819,  after  he  had  spent  three  years  in  the 
study  of  law  and  other  usef  1  sciences.  How  it  origin- 
ated, we  have  no  means  of  ascertaining,  as  he  kept  it  a 
secret.  He  had  painted  the  Good  Shepherd  some  years 
previous  and  spoke  of  it  repeatedly  in  his  letters  to  his 
beloved  sister  Amalia.  As  he  was  filled  with  the  love  of 
God,  may  we  not  suppose  that  the  frequent  thought  of  the 
Good  Shepherd  seeking  the  lost  sheep  may  have  gradually 
awakened  in  his  pious  and  loving  heart  the  desire  to 
imitate  Him  by  devoting  himself  to  the  priestly  state? 

Baraga's  spiritual  guide  and  confessor  at  Vienna  was 
Blessed  Clemens  Maria  Hofbauer,  that  illustrious  member 
of  the  congregation  of  the  Most  Holy  Redeemer,  who  died 
on  the  15th  of  March,  1820,  and  was  beatified  in  1888. 
It  was  most  likely  this  holy  man  that  awakened  in  the 
heart  of  Baraga  the  desire  of  devoting  himself  to  the 
ecclesiastical  state.  Baraga  visited  him  frequently  at 
Vienna,  and  the  sight  and  conversation  of  Blessed  Clemens 
Hofbauer  must  have  made  a  deep,  lasting,  and  salutary 
influence  on  the  pious  and  sensitive  youth.  Although 
Baraga  never  said  anything  about  how,  or  when,  or  by 
whom  he  was  induced  to  study  for  the  priesthood,  we  may 
safely  conclude  that,  after  God,  it  was  due  to  the  counsels 
and  prayers  of  his  holy  confessor.  The  burning  zeal  of 
St.  Alphonsus  was  infused  into  the  heart  of  his  worthy 
disciple,  Blessed  Clemens  Maria  Hofbauer,  and  he  again 
communicated  it  to  his  spiritual  child,  Baraga. 

In  order  not  to  do  anything  hastily,  he  continued  the 
study  of  law  until  he  had  finished  his  course  in  1821. 


•  'I 


i 


86 


BT.  BEV.   FBBDEBIO   BABAQA. 


He  then  applied  for  admiasioii  into  tlie  archdiocese  of 
Vienna,  and  his  petition  was  readily  granted.  However, 
when  he  returned  to  Liabach  and  told  his  bishop,  Rt.  Rev. 
Augustine  Gruber,  the  latter  prevailed  upon  him  to  enter 
the  diocese  of  Laibach,  to  which  he  belonged  by  right,  and 
he  accordingly  entered  the  Seminary  of  Liabach  in  the 
month  of  November,  1821.  He  was  an  exemplary  theo- 
logian, most  fervent  in  prayer,  a  close  and  earnest  student, 
observing  conscientiously  all  the  iniles  of  the  house,  per- 
forming all  his  duties  with  punctuality  and  fidelity, 
whether  the  eyes  of  his  superiors  were  upon  him  or  not. 
With  what  untiring  zeal  and  happy  results  he  applied 
himself  to  his  theological  studies  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
he  completed  certain  branches  of  study  within  a  year, 
which  others  could  scarcely  accomplish  in  two.  So  at  the 
end  of  two  years  he  was  duly  prepared  and  received  Holy 
Orders  on  the  21st  of  September,  A.  D.  1823,  at  Liabach, 
and  the  next  day  he  said  his  first  Mass  in  the  Cathedral  of 
that  city. 

We  will  not  attempt  to  describe  the  feelings  of  joy  and 
happiness  which  flooded  his  pure  soul  on  that  grand  day, 
when  he  consecrated  himself  unreservedly  for  his  whole 
life  to  the  service  of  his  Divine  Master.  Having  con- 
veyed all  his  rights  and  title  to  his  paternal  domain  of 
Treffen  to  his  sister  Amalia,  he  refused  even  to  accept  an 
annuity  of  600  fl.,  which  she  wished  him  to  reserve. 


Ui. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

rATiiEK  Baraga's  labors  at  st.  martin. 

After  his  ordination,  F.  Baraga  continued  his  tlieolog- 
ical  studicH  for  another  year,  during  which  he  preached 
the  word  of  God  with  great  fervor  and  unction  from  time 
to  time.  Speaking  of  the  feelings  that  animated  him  at 
that  time,  he  writes  to  his  sister : 

"I  am  now  without  an  inlieritance  in  this  world. 
When  He  shall  come,  whose  name  is  Love,  to  call  His 
faithful  servant.  He  will  say,  'Come !  I  will  give  thee 
what  is  right !'  Here  I  am.  Lord ;  give  me  now  what  is 
mine ;  give  me  mv  crown,  as  thou  didst  give  it  the  Apostle 
St.  Paul." 

In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1824  he  was  sent  to  the 
parish  of  St.  Martin,  as  assistant  to  its  reverend  pastor. 
There  he  had  abunda  t  opportunities  to  show  his  great 
zeal  and  administrative  talents.  The  one  great  thought 
ever  uppermost  in  his  mind  was  the  salvation  of  the 
immortal  souls  entrusted  to  his  care.  This  solicitude  for 
their  spiritual  welfare  made  him  become  "all  to  all"  in 
order  to  gain  all.  He  labored  with  all  the  energy  of  his 
loving  heart  to  convert  sinners,  to  reclaim  them  from  the 
ways  of  sin  and  vice,  and  lead  them  back  to  the  path  of 
virtue.  The  better  evervthinc;  that  he  undertook  for  the 
good  of  his  people  succeeded,  the  more  favorable  was  the 
judgment  they  passed  upon  his  priestly  labors  and  the 
higher  rose  the  burning  flames  of  his  fatherly  love  foi 
them.  He  gave  himself  neither  rest  nor  peace,  so  that  his 
sister  was  obliged,  even  in  the  first  month  of  his  pastoral 
labors,  to  implore  him  to  take  a  little  care  of  himself  and 


,ii«. 


Hti 


BT.  REV.    FRBDERIC   BARAOA. 


I' 


<i 


not  to  ruin  his  health.  Ills  answer  was  characteristic  of 
the  man : 

"Without  work  1  cannot  live.  In  lahor  I  liiul  tiiy 
sweetest  consolation.  1  want  to  labor  and  1  must  do  so  as 
long  as  it  shall  please  God  to  keep  me  in  goo<l  health. 
At  present  my  strength  for  work  is  at  its  l>est.  God's 
harvest-Held  is  immeasurable;  the  grain  is  high  and  ripe. 
The  servant,  whom  tlie  Master  has  called  to  work  in  the 
harvest-field,  should  not  stand  by  and  look  on  idly  wiiilst 
the  wild  birds  are  devouring  the  ripe  grain.  No,  this  I 
cannot  do;  it  was  not  given  me  to  act  thus,  even  if  1  should 
have  to  give  up  my  life  right  here." 

No,  it  was  not  given  him  to  be  idle.  His  whole  life 
might  be  described  in  these  few  words:  sanctity  in  action. 
He  sought  no  reaction  here  below,  no  rest  before  the  final 
rest  of  death,  the  rest  of  the  grave.  As  a  true  pastor  of 
souls,  he  labored  "in  season  and  out  of  season"  for  their 
salvation.  With  fiery  zeal  he  announced  the  truths  of 
salvation,  taught  the  little  ones  entrusted  to  his  care  the 
rudiments  of  faith  in  plain  catechetical  instructions,  heard 
confessions  day  after  day — for  people  flocked  to  his  con- 
fessional from  far  and  near — and  visited,  consoled,  and 
helped  the  sick  and  poor. 

As  he  himself  knew  and  felt  the  sweetness  and  happi- 
ness which  are  the  fruits  of  a  thorough  knowledge  and 
TUiderstanding  of  the  consoling  truths  of  the  holy  Catholic 
:  ^ligion,  he  had  also  the  peculiar  gift  of  teaching  and 
explaining  those  truths  with  that  convincing  power  and 
burning  zeal  that  even  the  most  hardened  sinners  were 
moved  to  repentance  and  yielded  to  the  sweet  and  powerful 
workings  of  divine  grace  in  their  hearts.  And  when  those 
poor,  repentant  sinners  came  to  him  to  open  to  him  their 
hearts,  it  was  his  greatest  joy  to  receive  them,  to  pour  the 
oil  and  wine  of  consolation  into  their  lacerated  hearts,  to 
bind  their  wounds  and  bring  them  back  to  the  Good  Father 
from  whom  they  had  strayed.     He  knew  how  to  inspire 


!    I 


LABOKK  AT  8T.  M/ttTIN. 


89 


thorn  with  a  sahitarv  fear  of  the  iustico  of  Gixl  and  unite 
th(^  same  to  tlie  ('onsoiing  eontidence  in  His  infinite  mercy. 
Wliih;  en<;age(l  in  the  study  of  eivil  hiw  in  Vienna,  lie  gave 
expression  to  this  (h>uhle  sentiment  of  fear  and  confidence, 
which  shouhl  animate  the  repentant  sinner,  in  a  letter  to 
his  sister  Amalia,  written  in  ISIJ).      He  savs: 

"Great  and  fearful  are  the  offenses  committed  by  men. 
Hut  the  greatest  and  most  awful  offense  is  the  sin  of 
despairing  in  the  infinite  mercy  of  our  eternal  Father. 
()  that  I  could  imprint  with  angelic  words  upon  the  heart 
of  the  miserable  sinner  who  with  a  contrite  heart  wishes  to 
return  to  his  offended  Father,  but  who,  under  the  sense  of 
the  inunenso  outrage  committed  against  God,  cannot  imag- 
ine how  the  eternal,  just  God  can  forg'vc  him ;  O  that  I 
could  impress  upon  his  heart  these  words:  My  friend! 
In  the  everlasting  justice  of  God  is  also  at  the  same  time 
the  love  of  an  infinite  mercy,  though  we  cannot  understand 
tliis  with  our  poor,  limited  intellect.  By  your  offense  you 
indeed  outraged  the  divine  justice  so  much  that  all  man- 
kind combined  could  not  sufficiently  atone  for  this  outrage, 
but  the  eternal  Son  of  God  gave  Himself  for  you,  sinner, 
as  a  just  reconciliation.  He  reconciled  you  with  the 
Eternal  Justice  and  made  it  possible  for  you  to  be 
re-united  again  with  the  Eternal  Love  through  love.  See, 
God  demands  nothing  else  from  you  but  your  good  will." 

With  F.  Baraga's  coming  to  St.  Martin,  new  life  came 
to  the  parish.  Before  that  but  few  frequented  the  Sacra- 
ments; many  did  not  comply  with  their  Easter-duty. 
Gloved  by  his  soul-stirring  discourses  in  the  pulpit  and  his 
boundless  love  and  compassion  towards  poor  sinners  in  the 
confessional,  numbers  came  to  him  from  all  quarters; 
sinners,  to  be  led  back  to  God ;  just  to  be  conducted  by  his 
pious  and  prudent  counsels  on  the  road  c.'^  Christian  per- 
fection. Being  thoroughly  convinced  of  the  truth  that  the 
spiritual  life  of  a  congregation  will  flourish  in  proportion 
as  it  is  nourished  by  the  frequent  reception  of  the  Holy 


90 


BT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


■M 


k 


liii: 


Sacraments,  it  was  his  first  and  chief  endeavor  to  induce 
his  people  to  approach  the  Sacraments  worthily  and  fre- 
quently. And  the  people,  seeing  how  it  made  him  happy 
to  go  to  the  confessional,  and  how  he  was  ever  ready,  at 
a  moment's  notice,  to  be  at  their  disposal,  needed  no  long 
sermons  and  exhortations  to  bring  them  to  confession  in 
large  numbers. 

Moreover,  on  Sunday  afternoons  and  on  holy  days  he 
taught  catechism,  and  the  instruction  proved  so  attractive 
and  popular  that  the  church  used  to  be  filled  as  at  High 
Mass,  many  people  from  the  country  remaining  in  town 
after  the  morning  services  in  order  to  attend  the  same. 

Would  to  God  that  all  priests  having  the  care  of  souls 
would  imitate  this  saintly  priest.  The  children  are  the 
choice  portion  of  the  flock  of  Christ.  Upon  their  training 
depends  the  future  of  the  family.  Church  and  State. 

F.  Baraga  took  special  pains  to  instruct  such  poor  chil- 
dren as  could  not  be  sent  to  school  on  account  of  the  pov- 
erty of  their  parents.  He  gathered  them  around  him,  and 
that  with  such  results  that  he  could  write  in  the  very  first 
month  of  his  arrival  at  Medlika,  to  send  him  sixtv  A-B-C 
books,  as  those  he  had  brought  along  were  not  sufficient  for 
even  one-half  of  the  children  that  frequented  his  school. 

His  inborn  kindness  as  well  as  supernatural  love  to 
souls  made  him  assiduous  in  attending  the  sick.  He  eon- 
soled  them  in  their  sorrows  and  relieved  their  wants  as  far 
as  was  in  his  power.  Kind-heartedness  and  charity  to  the 
poor  and  destitute  he  had  imbibed,  so  to  say,  with  his 
mother's  milk.  He  learned  the  practice  of  these  virtues 
at  the  side  of  his  mother  when  visiting  with  her  the  sick 
and  needy.  Greed  or  covetousness  he  knew  not.  The 
more  he  had  the  more  he  gave.  He  had  a  beautifi'^  say- 
ing : '  "Whatever  you  give  to  the  poor,  that  you  shall  have ; 
what  you  do  not  give,  that  some  one  else  will  have."  He 
frequently  used  the  words  of  our  Lord :  "As  long  as  you 
did  it  to  one  of  these  My  least  brethren,  you  did  it  to  Me." 


r|i!f'^ 


LABORS  AT  ST.  MARTIN. 


91 


People  tell  o:f  Lim  how  one  day  he  came  home  bare- 
footed, because  he  had  given  his  shoes  to  a  shoeless  beggar 
whom  he  had  mei:  on  a  sick-call.  Another  time  he  found 
a  sick  beggar  h'ing  on  the  street,  unable  to  help  himself. 
F.  Baraga  took  the  poor  man  in  his  arms,  carried  him  to 
the  priest's  house  and  nursed  him  until  he  recovered.  If 
at  times  he  expressed  a  wish  to  have  something,  it  "was  only 
that  he  might  be  able  to  give  to  the  poor  and  sick,  or  to  do 
good  Avith  it.  His  usual  saying  was:  ''I  do  not  want 
riches,  but  to  havo  a  penny  (to  give  away)  I  would  like 
well  enough.."' 

In  the  year  1826  F.  Baraga  published  a  Slavonian 
prayer-book  with  tho  title,  "Spiritual  Food."  The  editor 
of  the  Slavonian  I.if  3  of  Baraga,  Dr.  Vonciua,  speaks  of 
this  prayer-book  in  terms  of  the  highest  praise.     He  says : 

"Of  all  the  pray€:v-books  that  were  ever  edited  there  is 
none  w^hich  was  so  suitable  to  the  needs  and  wants  of  the 
Slavonian  people,  n-oxie  to  which  they  were  so  accustomed, 
as  to  this  prayer-bo^k  of  Baraga,  'Dusna  pasa ;'  very  many 
editions  of  it  have  already  appeared;  it  remains  even  to 
this  day  the  most  popular  prayer-book  in  Krain  (Car- 
niola).  This  book  is  a  dear  souvenir,  by  which  Baraga 
lives  and  shall  continue  to  live  in  the  j^rateful  memory  of 
the  pious  Slavonian  people,  wherever  they  reside." 

In  the  year  1830  F.  Baraga  published  a  work  called, 
"The  Veneration  and  Invocation  of  the  Blessed  Virgin, 
Mother  of  God."  He  translated  this  work  from  the  Ger- 
man into  Slavonian  at  the  request  of  his  reverend  friend 
and  benefactor,  Very  Rev.  Augustin  Shiga. 

At  the  parsonage  in  St.  Martin's  parish  there  was  an 
aged  servant  by  the  name  of  Mica  (Mary).  F.  Baraga 
used  to  say  to  her:  "Mica,  please  go  and  see  whether  any- 
one is  waiting  at  my  confessional ;  I  shall  be  very  thankful 
to  you  for  so  doing."  The  good  old  woman  would  go  into 
the  church  at  two  or  three  o'clock  Sunday  mornings, 
because  generally  at  that  early  hour  there  would  be  people 


r 


•••I  ■  ■    1  im 


•if ; : 


;i 


$ 


■3'! 


■■*■,( 


/'IP 


92 


RT.  BEV.  FREDERIC  BABAGA. 


in  tlie  cliiirch  preparing  for  confession,  to  whom  Baraga 
would  attend  immediately.  His  confessional  used  to  be 
besieged  with  crowds  of  penitents,  for  people  from  other 
parishes,  ten  or  twelve  miles  away,  would  flock  to  his  con- 
fessional. Hence  it  was  a  common  saying  with  the  people 
of  St.  Martin :    "With  us  it  is  always  Portiuncula." 

This  great  zeal  of  Baraga  met  with  disapproval  from 
his  colleagues.      Many   of  the   Austrian   priests   of   that 
period  had  received  their  clerical  training  in  seminaries 
infected  with  Febronianism  and  Jansenism.     The  clergy 
educated  at  such  institutions  were  destitute  of  the  true, 
Catholic  spirit  of  piety  and  discountenanced  the  frequent 
reception  of  the  Sacraments.     The  result  may  easily  be 
imagined ;  a  universal  stagnation  of  Catholic  life  and  devo- 
tion.    Baraga  had  imbibed  a  different  spirit.     His  con- 
stant aim  was  to  enkindle  everywhere  true  piety  and  pro- 
mote   the    frequentation    of    the    Sacraments.      On    this 
account  he  was  disliked,  belittled,  and  ill-spoken  of  by 
many   of  his   luke-warm,    Josephinistically-educated   col- 
leagues.    The  people,  however,  held  to  Baraga.  ^   They 
loved  and  venerated  him  as  a  saint.     Even  at  the  present 
day,  after  a  lapse  of  seventy  years,  his  memory  is  still 
fresh  wdtli  them,  and  in  almost  every  house  in  St.  Martin's 
parish  a  picture  of  Baraga  may  be  seen.     Many  a  pious 
legend  they  tell  of  their  former  curate.    On  a  certain  occa- 
sion, they  say,  he  was  taking  the  Blessed  Sacrament  to  a 
sick  person,  his  sacristan  accompanying  him.     They  came 
to  the  River  Save,  which  had  to  be  crossed.    As  there  was 
no  bridge  anywhere  nearby,  the  sacristan  took  Baraga  on 
his  shoulders  and  carried  him  across  the  river  without  feel- 
ing any  weight. 

The  only  priest  in  the  whole  neighborhood,  who 
befriended  Baraga  and  who  was  heart  and  soul  with  him, 
Avas  Rev.  Augustin  Shiga,  the  last  member  of  the  sup- 
pressed Cistercian  Abbey  of  Landstrass  in  Untcrkrain. 
He  was  at  the  time  parish  priest  of  Krainburg   (Slov. 


LABORS  AT  ST.  MARTIN. 


93 


Kranz),  and  also  dean  of  that  district.  Baraga  found  in 
him  a  true  friend  and  protector.  The  hitter  invited  him 
to  preach,  during  th^ee  consecutive  days  before  Ash 
Wednesday,  1827,  in  the  parish  church  of  Krainburg  on 
the  Holy  Eucharist,  which  he  did  before  an  immense  con- 
course of  people,  to  the  great  mortification  of  his  envious 
colleagues  in  the  ministry.  They  wrongly  accused  him  to 
his  Bishop,  Kt.  Rev.  Anton  Aloys  Wolf,  who  removed  him 
from  St.  Martin  and  sent  him  to  Medlika,  near  the 
boundary  of  Croatia,  in  June,  1828.  His  friend,  Rev. 
Augaistin  Sluga,  died  at  the  ripe  age  of  eighty-nine,  on  the 
19th  of  July,  1842,  being  at  the  time  honorary  Canon  of 
the  Cathedral  Chapter  at  Laibach. 

As  to  Baraga's  personal  wants  in  those  days,  they  were 
few  and  easily  supplied.  His  meals  were  extremely 
frugal ;  he  seldom  ate  meat,  and  then  but  little ;  he  never 
drank  wine.  He  generally  slept  on  hard  boards,  and  had 
very  little  furniture  in  his  room.  He  gave  all  he  had  to 
the  poor  and  fo^  beautifying  the  House  of  God.  He  was 
remarkably  kind  to  children,  especially  to  those  who  were 
poor.  On  great  feast  days  his  sister  Amalia  used  to  send 
him  from  Treffen  all  kinds  of  confectionary,  not  a  bit  of 
which  he  would  put  in  his  own  mouth,  but  would  divide 
these  sweetmeats  among  the  children,  the  poor  and  the  sick. 
The  latter  he  visited  very  often  and  consoled  and  helped 
them  in  every  way  possible. 


'I! 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


i    !   ! 


m 


im. 


■  if! 


r^-ir 


.  1 


FATHER  BARAGA  S  LABORS  AT  MEDLIKA.  HE  RESOLVES  TO 
DEVOTE  HIMSELF  TO  THE  INDIAN  MISSIONS  OF 
AMERICA;  IS  RECEIVED  INTO  THE  DIOCESE  OF  CINCIN- 
NATI.      SCENE  AT  HIS  DEPARTURE   FROM  MEDLIKA. 

In  Baraga's  time  the  parish  of  Medlika  was  large,  with 
more  than  6,000  souls  and  twenty  or  more  stations  with 
chapels.  The  people  were  very  kindhearted,  but  sadly 
neglected  and  very  ignorant  as  to  their  religion. 

In  this  place  Baraga  labored  with  his  customary  zeal 
and  forgetfulness  of  self.  God  visibly  blessed  his  labors. 
One  of  his  first  cares  was  to  procure  a  beautiful  set  of 
stations  or  AVay  of  the  Cross  for  the  parish  church  of  that 
city,  to  promote  devotion  to  the  Passion  of  our  Lord.  In 
due  season  they  arrived  and  were  carried  in  solemn  pro- 
cession through  the  streets  of  Medlika  from  the  parsonage 
to  the  church.  They  were  solemnly  blessed  and  erected 
in  the  month  of  October,  only  four  months  after  his 
arrival  in  that  city.  F.  Baraga  himself  describes  vividly 
this  celebration  in  a  letter  to  Amalia : 

"When  we  arrived  at  the  church,  the  men,  who  carried 
the  pictures,  placed  themselves,  two  and  two  at  the  places 
where  the  pictures  were  to  be  hung.  Then  I  ascended  the 
ladder  and  it  was  a  real  joy  for  me  to  hang  up  the  pictures 
with  my  own  hands.  Oh,  dearest  Amalia !  I  cannot  tell 
you  how  the  hearts  of  my  people  beat  with  joy  at  this 
unusual  solemnity.  I  have  often  shed  tears,  but  our 
people  never  shed  tears  so  readily  and  so  abundantly  as  on 
that  Sunday.     !N^ow  let  me  tell  you  how  we  finished  this 


LABORS  AT  MEDLIKA. 


95 


solemnity.  In  my  inexpressible  delight  I  ascended  the 
pulpit  and  out  of  devotion  for  the  Way  of  the  Cross,  I 
spoke  with  such  fervor  that  very  soon  all  my  hearers  were 
in  tears,  and  many  have  declared  afterwards  that  this  day 
would  remain  for  all  time  in  the  memory  of  the  people  of 
^^ledlika.  Everlasting  praise  to  the  Heavenly  Father, 
whose  hand  was  opened  Avith  such  fatherly  mercy  at  this 
celebration,  for  it  is  lie  that  effected  all  this.  Our  coun- 
try people  cannot  control  themselves,  so  great  is  their 
delight  at  the  sight  of  the  holy  stations,  and  they  often  ask 
when  the  priest  will  pray  the  stations  with  them.'' 

Scarcely  had  this  one  wish  of  Baraga's  been  fulfilled, 
namely,  to  see  the  Way  of  the  Cross  erected  in  the  parish 
church  of  JMetlika,  when  he  turned  his  attention  to  other 
needs  of  the  church.  The  high  altar,  as  well  as  the  side 
altars  of  the  parish  church  were  in  need  of  renovation,  new 
vestments,  and  other  church  utensils  had  to  be  bought  for 
the  churches  under  his  care.  All  these  things  were 
procured  in  a  short  time,  mostly  at  his  own  expense.  At 
the  same  time  he  found  time  to  publish  a  work,  entitled : 
"Visits  to  Jesus  Christ  in  the  ]Most  Holy  Sacrament,"  a 
translation  of  a  similar  w^ork  of  St.  Alphonsus  Liguori. 
All  this  shows  how  much  a  zealous  servant  of  God  can 
undertake  and  accomplish,  who  has  God's  interests  and  the 
salvation  of  souls  at  heart. 

Whilst  F.  Baraga  was  thus  laboring  with  all  the 
earnestness  and  energy  of  his  noble  soul  for  the  salvation 
of  his  countrymen,  the  thought  of  so  many  poor  pagans 
living  in  the  darknes  of  heathenism,  in  ignorance  and  sin. 
awakened  gradually  in  his  heart  an  earnest  desire  to 
devote  himself  to  their  conversion.  It  cannot  with  cer- 
tainty be  said  when  and  where  this  thought  of  going  to  the 
pagans  first  originated  in  his  mind.  Certain  it  is  that 
it  was  dormant  several  vears  before  he  finallv  revealed  it 
to  others.  The  author  of  the  Slavonian  Life  of  Baraga 
remarks : 


H-^^'S 


% 


96 


RT.  REV.  FRBDERIO   BARAOA. 


''Taking  into  consideration  that  already  at  St. 
JMartin's  he  usually  slept  on  bare  straw  or  on  a  board;  that 
lie  would  not  shrink  neither  from  great  cold  nor  excessive 
heat ;  that  he  not  only  abstained  entirely  from  wine,  but 
that  very  often  his  breakfast  and  supper  consisted  only  of 
bread  and  water;  from  these  and  manv  other  such  fasts 
and  mortifications  in  eating  and  drinking,  we  must  con- 
clude that  this  resolution  must  have  been  growing  for 
several  years  even  if  he  had  not  so  declared  in  a  letter  to 
his  sister.  For  this  reason  he  kept  silent  and  did  not 
reveal  this  his  heart's  desire  to  anyone,  until  from  various 
indications  he  had  been  fully  convinced  that  his  wish  iu 
this  matter  perfectly  agreed  with  the  will  of  God,  and  that 
it  was  God  who  was  calling  him  thither  where  his  own 
heart'^-  longing  was  directed." 

In  the  year  1829  a  society  was  organized  in  Vienna, 
Austria,  wdiich  had  for  its  avowed  object  the  supporting 
of  the  North  American  missions.  This  societv  was 
called  "Die  Leopoldinen-Stiftung"  (Leopoldine  Society). 
It  was  approved  by  Pope  Leo  XII.,  who,  eleven  days 
before  his  death,  issued  in  its  favor  an  Apostolic  Brief  and 
granted  certain  indulgences  to  its  members.  His  Imper- 
ial Highness,  Archduke  Rudolph,  Cardinal  Prince  Arch- 
bishop of  Ollmiitz  deigned  to  act  as  its  supreme  head  and 
superintendent,  and  he  appointed  the  Prince  Archbishop 
of  Vienna  as  his  representative.  The  rules  and  regula- 
tions of  the  society  were  published  at  Vienna  on  the  13th 
of  ^lay,  1829.  This  society  has  done  immense  good  to 
the  struggling  church  of  our  country.  Year  after  year 
large  contributions  were  sent  to  the  poor  bishops,  mission- 
aries, and  religious  societies.  In  the  appendix  of  this 
work  the  reader  will  find  a  detailed  statement  of  the  con- 
tributions sent  to  this  country  betwen  1829  and  1868. 

Father  Baraga  looked  upon  the  establishment  of  this 
society  in  his  country  as  one  of  the  many  indications  of 
his  vocation  to  the  Indian  missionarv  field.     He,  there- 


■•  \- 


JiABORS  AT  METLIKA. 


97 


fore,  made  known  the  secret  wish  of  his  heart,  namely,  to 
go  to  the  Indians,  to  his  bishop  and  to  the  managers  of 
the  Leopoldine  Society,  all  of  whom  highly  approved  of 
his  design.  Full  of  joy  at  the  successful  outcome  of  his 
request,  ho  immediately  wrote  from  Metlika  to  his  sister 
Amalia,  under  date  of  Xovember  4th,  1821) : 

"You  say  the  truth  when  you  write  that  the  will  of 
God  is  seen  plainly  in  my  choice  to  go  on  the  mission. 
Therefore  I  most  firmly  hope  and  I  am  immensely  rejoiced 
that  God  has  looked  upon  me  with  a  truly  great  love  and 
that  lie  has  heard  my  most  fervent  prayers  and  supplica- 
tions, which  are  of  several  years'  duration!  From  all  that 
has  happened  in  such  an  extraordinarily  short  time,  I  hope 
to  foresee  that  it  will  be  through  the  will  of  God  that  I 
go  to  the  mission.  I  prayed  to  Goil,  especially  when 
going  to  Laibach,  and  later  until  I  received  my  answer 
from  Vienna  and  the  bisho])'s  representative,  to  so  guide 
and  dispos-^  my  spiritual  and  temporal  superiors,  whose 
hearts  are  in  His  hands,  that  by  their  decision  Ilis  most 
holy  will  might  be  made  known  to  me,  which  I  could  not 
know  in  anv  other  wav.  And  see,  without  anv  hesitation, 
both  iny  spiritual  and  tem])oral  surperiors  grant  mo  their 
permission  to  go  to  those  missions,  on  condition  that  I 
obtain  from  the  corresponding  bishop  the  assurance  that 
he  will  receive  me  into  his  diocese." 

Having  thus  obtained  the  necessary  permission  to 
leave  his  diocese,  he  wrote  to  Rt.  Kev.  Edward  Fenwick, 
Bishop  of  Cincinnati,  for  admission  into  his  diocese.  This 
letter  was  lost.  In  vain  F.  Baraga  waited  and  Avaited  for 
an  answer.  ]S[o  answer  came.  However,  during  the  long 
months  of  anxious  suspense  he  had  ample  opportunity  to 
examine  and  consider  any  doubts  that  might  have  arisen 
in  his  mind  as  to  the  true  nature  of  his  vocation  to  the 
misionary  life.  But  as  in  all  things,  so  also  in  this 
important  affair,  he  sought  nothing  but  the  fulfilment  of 
the  most  holy  will  of  God.     Fiat  voluntas  Dei — may  the 


s    i 


»  1  ', 


'^'  li 


98 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


I  I 


will  of  God,  not  mine,  be  done — was  his  daily  and  hourly 
prayer.  These  sentiments  of  entire  resignation  to  the 
will  of  God  are  beautifully  expressed  in  a  letter  to  Amalia, 
bis  sister,  dated  January  22d,  1830.     He  writes: 

"You  now  think  that  after  all  it  may  be  that  I  will 
need  those  books  myself.  To  be  sure,  with  God  every- 
thing is  possible.  God  could  allow  my  letter  to  the  Bishop 
of  Cincinnati,  or  his  to  me,  to  be  lost  on  its  long  and  unsafe 
transit.  I  will  certainly  write  another  letter  if  I  receive 
no  answer  by  March  the  IDtli,  feast  of  St.  Joseph. 
Almighty  God  can  permit  my  second  lettcj*  to  be  lost,  like 
the  first,  if  it  should  be  His  holy  will  that  I  am  not  to  go 
there.  But  He  has  at  His  disposal  a  thousand  other  means 
of  turning  me  away  from  my  design.  He  is  the  Lord — 
His  holy  will  be  done !" 

Having  waited  in  vain  until  the  5th  of  April,  he  wrote 
a  second  letter  to  Cincinnati.  The  answer  came  on  Sep- 
tember 22d,  1830,  and  filled  him  with  great  joy,  to  which 
he  gives  expression  in  a  letter  to  his  sister : 

''I^ow  at  length  I  hear  from  afar  the  voice,  which 
invites  me  to  come  to  the  holv  mission.  On  the  22d  of 
September,  just  on  the  se'\''enth  anniversary  of  my  first 
holy  Mass,  I  received  a  letter  from  North  America,  from 
the  Bishop  of  Cincinnati,  in  which  his  representative,  that 
is,  the  Vicar-general,  entreats  me  most  pressingly  to  come 
as  soon  as  possible  to  that  so  much  neglected  part  of  the 
Lord's  vineyard.  !N^ow  I  dare  hope  that  all  obstacles  have 
been  removed ;  now  I  shall  soon  reach  the  ^oal  for  which 
I  have  so  long  aspired." 

In  another  letter,  written  to  that  same  sister  he  loved 
with  such  a  strong  and  pure  love,  shortly  before  his  de- 
parture from  Metlika  he  says  amongst  other  things : 

"I  must  scold  you  a  little  for  giving  yourself  so  much 
unnecessary  trouble  and  care,  that  you  are  so  much  afraid 
on  my  account  of  the  cold  winters,  of  the  hardships, 
hunger  and  thirst,  and  all  kinds  of  dangers,  which  may 


i  • 


LAB0B8  AT  METLIKA. 


99 


overtake  me  on  my  travels.  Do  not,  my  dear  sister,  do 
not,  I  beseech  you,  let  these  trifles  worry  you.  If  the  mis- 
sionaries troubled  themselves  about  cold,  heat,  hunger  and 
thirst,  fatigues,  dangers  and  other  hardships,  they  would 
not  bring  many  heathens  into  the  Christian  fold.  As 
merchants  do  not  shr^'nk  from  perils  and  hardships  in 
order  to  increase  their  possessions  which  they  can  enjoy 
only  to  the  end  of  their  short  life,  why  should  these  dif- 
ficulties frighten  me  who  have  no  other  object  in  view  than 
to  gain  immortal  souls  for  heaven  'i  Banish,  then,  all 
these  vain  cares  from  your  mind,  which  oppress  you  so 
much  as  you  write  in  your  letter,  and  give  me  up  perfectly 
and  completely  to  the  Lord." 

After  Baraga  had  arranged  all  his  affairs  and  received 
all  things  necessary  for  his  long  journey,  it  was  his  only 
care  to  start  as  soon  as  possible.     Great  was  the  grief  of 
the  good  people  of  Metlika  when  the  day  of  his  departure 
was  come.     He  had  labored  among  them  for  two  years 
and  had  endeared  himself  to  them  by  his  many  acts  of 
kindness   a 'id    -"ataorly  ^oodn^^st.     He  had  been  a  true 
father   una   friend   to   them   ail.     His    departure   from 
Metlik-i  was  indeed  sad.     Towards  the  end  of  October, 
1830,  on  a  Sanday  aftor  catsehism,  he  spoke  a  few  words 
of  farewell  to  his  people.     Cries  and  lamentations  broke 
forth  on  all  sides.    Baraga  himself  could  not  restrain  his 
tears.    He  left  the  pulpit  and  kindly  requested  one  of  his 
reverend  colleagues  to  pray  the  Litany  in  his  stead.    But 
when  the  people  noticed  that  he  was   not  kneeling  as 
usually  before  the  altar,  they  ran  out  of  the  church  after 
him  and  kissed  his  hands  and  garment,  crying  piteously  at 
the  same  time. 

The  next  day  the  wagon  that  was  to  take  him  away 
was  waiting  in  front  of  the  priest's  house.  Hundreds  of 
people  had  come  from  all  sides  to  see  him  once  more  and 
receive  his  parting  blessing.     When  Baraga  came  out  of 


100 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAQA. 


■0 


the  hoii8o  all  crowded  around  him  to  kiss  his  hands  or  gar- 
ment.   All  wept  bitterly. 

After  Baraga  had  taken  his  seat  on  the  wagon,  someone 
attracted  his  attention  by  tapping  on  his  arm.  It  was  the 
parish  priest,  who  was  also  dean,  Rev.  Marcus  Derganc. 
He  had  entertained  for  a  long  time  a  gi'eat  dislike  to 
Father  Baraga  on  account  of  the  latter's  great  popularity. 
"Father  Frederic,"  says  he,  addressing  Baraga,  "you  have 
rummaged  a  great  deal  in  our  churches  and  wanted  to 
make  yourself  important  by  getting  things  for  them. 
But  all  is  not  paid  for  yet.  Who  will  pay  for  them  when 
you  are  gone  ?" 

Baraga  arose  from  his  seat  and  looked  sadly  at  the 
dean.  Tears  glistened  in  his  eyes.  He  said :  "Very  Rev. 
Dean,  you  know  very  well  that  I  have  no  property  and  that 
my  pockets  are  empty.  I  willingly  give  you  my  coat  that 
you  may  pay  with  it  the  remaining  debts."  He  then 
began  to  pull  oif  his  coat,  which  he  had  lately  got  made 
to  cover  Avith  it  his  shabby  clothes.  At  this,  loud  munnurs 
of  discontent  were  heard.  The ,  people  ,\yci'e  highly 
incensed  at  the  dean'*^  unreasonable  /l\cplay  of  ill-will 
against  Baraga.  The  dean  h^stilj  witj?.drew,  iull,of  con- 
fusion and  without  >,akihg,B'dTiigdii  ^'y^h  T^)^  debts, 
which  the  latter  had  contracted  in  repairing  and  ornament- 
ing the  churches  under  his  care,  were  aftei*wards  paid 
mostly  by  his  sister  Amalia  and  partly  by  the  voluntary 
contributions  of  pious  people. 

After  the  dean's  departure,  Baraga  wanted  to  drive 
away.  But  the  people  seized  the  wheels  of  the  wagon  on 
which  he  was  sitting,  and  forcibly  held  back  the  horse  and 
wagon.  He  could  not  stir.  He  consoled  them  and  begged 
to  let  him  depart,  but  in  vain.  It  was  only  after  a  long 
delay  that  they  finally  let  him  go.  Once  more  he  gave 
them  his  blessing,  and  the  wagon  began  to  move.  Many 
ran  after  him.  All  cried  so  loud  that  their  cries  and 
lan^  3ntations  could  be  heard  at  a  great  distance.     We  are 


LABORS  AT  METLIKA. 


101 


reniinded  here  of  St.  Paul's  departure  from  Miletus  (Acts 
Ap.,  ch.  xx).     ^'Magnus  autem  fletus  factus  est  omnium." 

Great,  also,  was  the  grief  of  his  dear  sister  Amalia, 
when,  on  the  29  th  of  October,  at  half -past  nine  in  the 
evening,  she  accompanied  him  to  the  stage  coach  which 
was  to  carry  him  away.  But  this  we  must  mention:  that 
Baraga  himself,  though  very  tender-hearted  and  easily 
moved  to  tears,  left  everything  that  was  dear  to  him — 
sister,  fatherland,  all — with  a  cheerful  heart.  All  was 
forgotten  in  the  happy  thought  of  becoming  now  a  mis- 
sionary in  America. 

After  a  journey  of  two  days  and  three  nights,  he 
arrived  at  Vienna  on  the  1st  of  November.  There  he  was 
received  with  great  joy  and  much  kindness  everywhere, 
especially  by  the  directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society,  who 
gave  him  400  florins  to  pay  his  traveling  expenses,  as  he 
was  their  first  candidate  for  the  Indian  mission.  Others 
presented  him  with  various  articles  for  his  mission. 


('■i 


ii 


1; 


CHAPTER  XV. 

FATHER  BABAOA  LEAVES  EUROPE.      INCIDENTS  OF  HIS 

JOURNEY.       ARRIVES    AT    CINCINNATI.       HIS 

LABORS  IN  THAT  CITY. 


■m\ 


\  i 


Having  obtained  his  "Exeat"  from  the  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop 
of  Laibach  and  his  admittance  into  the  diocese  of  Cincin- 
nati, Father  Baraga  departed  from  Vienna  on  the  12th 
of  November,  1830.  Traveling  by  way  of  Linz,  Passau, 
and  Landshut,  he  arrived  at  Munich,  Bavaria,  on  the  15th 
of  said  month.  He  stayed  there  two  days,  and  went,  on 
the  19th,  to  Strassburg.  Being  on  French  territory,  he 
feared  trouble  on  account  of  the  excited  state  of  the  coun- 
try. He  was  not  molested,  however,  in  the  least.  On 
November  23d  he  arrived  at  Paris  and  remained  there 
three  days  to  see  the  most  celebrated  sights  of  tht  ^reat 
French  metropolis. 

On  the  27th  of  November  he  arrived  at  Havre  de 
Grace,  where  he  was  obliged  to  wait  until  the  first  of 
December,  on  which  day  he  embarked  for  New  York.  It 
is  an  indication  of  F.  Baraga's  humility  and  frugality  that 
he  traveled  as  deck-passenger.  The  fare  from  Havre  de 
Grace  to  New  York  was  but  52  florins.  The  weather  was, 
on  the  whole,  very  favorable.  On  the  second  Sunday  and 
Monday  of  Advent,  however,  they  had  a  fearful  storm, 
which  filled  the  passengers  with  terror,  as  the  mountain- 
high  waves  threatened  to  submerge  the  ship.  During  the 
voyage  F.  Baraga  suffered  much  from  sea-sickness,  but 
no  sooner  had  he  landed  than  he  recovered  and  enjoyed 
better  health  than  he  foimerly  had  in  his  own  native  land. 


LAIJORS  AT  CINCINNATI. 


103 


He  landed  in  Now  York  on  December  Slst,  1830.  With 
feelingH  ()f  deep  gratitude  to  Divine  Providence,  who  had 
brought  him  safely  acnwH  the  wtormy  Atlantic,  he  stepped 
on  the  soil  of  the  New  World,  where  he  was  to  labor  so  long 
and  faithfullv  for  the  cimversion  of  innumerable  souls. 

Although  New  York  contained  then  one  hundred  and 
sixty  churches  of  all  possible  denominations,  he  found 
only  four  (-atholic  j)laces  of  worshij),  and  that  in  a  city 
which  then  had  i,  po}  ulation  of  200,000.  On  the  4th  of 
January,  J8IJ1,  F.  i3araga  left  New  York,  and  landed  the 
same  day  in  Philadelphia,  where  he  stopped  five  days.  At 
the  urgent  request  of  the  priest,  who  had  kindly  r(M3eived 
him,  he  preached  with  a  heart  full  of  emoti(m,  in  German, 
on  Sunday,  the  ninth  of  January. 

On  the  following  day  he  "et  out  from  Philadelphia, 
and  arrived  late  that  same  dav  in  Baltimore.  The  next 
day  he  paid  a  visit  to  Most  Rev.  James  Whitfield,  Arch- 
bishop of  that  city.  The  good  Prelate  received  the  young 
priest  most  kindly  and  praised  his  goo<l  intention  of  devot- 
ing himself  to  the  Indian  mission.  ITe  left  Baltimore  on 
the  12th  of  January.  A  short  distance  from  ColUmbus, 
O.,  an  accident  occurred,  which  might  have  cost  him  his 
life  and  which  shows  the  loving  care  of  God  for  the  young 
missionary.  As  ho  was  traveling  on  a  stage,  he  arrived, 
some  time  after  midnight,  at  a  hotel  not  far  from  Colum- 
bus. The  passengers  got  out  to  wann  themselves. 
Scarcely  had  they  done  so  when  the  horses  became  fright- 
ened and  ran  away.  At  a  considerable  distance  the  stage 
was  found  in  a  ravine  all  smashed  to  pieces.  The  passen- 
gers thanked  God  for  their  wonderful  escape,  for  had  the 
accident  occurred  a  few  moments  sooner,  while  they  were 
on  the  stage,  some  of  them  would  probably  have  lost  their 
lives.  At  the  next  house  another  conveyance  was  hired, 
and  so  they  arrived  safely  at  Columbus,  whence  a  stage 
brought  them  to  Cincinnati,  where  Baraga  arrived  on  the 
18th  of  January.     The  whole  cost  of  the  journey  from 


m 


)M 


ill 

il 

lH^M;              :,        :  Il 

|hBB  !'■  V  'iP 

HlH     i.     :':     it| 

il 

\:{M 

pM 

Etnll 

^Sfc£^^^8 

1 

ill 


m 


k 


104 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


■i,l!. 


iii? 


'l'^:' 
M 


'■  :ii:;r 
:■■#..' 


Vienna  to  Cincinnati  was  365  florins.  Bishop  Fenwick 
received  F.  Baraga  most  cordially.  It  pleased  him  highly 
that  Baraga  had  arrived  so  soon,  for  he  had  not  expected 
him  before  May.  He  was  particularly  delighted  when  F. 
Baraga  told  him  that  he  had  come,  not  to  stay  in  the  city, 
but  that  he  wanted  to  go  to  the  Indians  to  labor  for  their 
conversion.  The  good  Bishop  told  him  to  remain  over 
winter  in  Cincinnati  and  that  he  would  take  him  along 
on  his  next  Episcopal  visitation  and  station  him  at  a  suit- 
able place. 

F.  Baraga  was  enthusiastic  with  praise  of  Bishop  Fen- 
wick. He  says  one  cannot  imagine  a  more  humble,  kind, 
pious,  and  zealous  Prelate  than  the  Bishop.  He  compares 
him  io  St.  Francis  de  Sales  on  account  of  his  affable  and 
saintly  d^'sposition.  As  to  his  labors  during  his  stay  in 
Cincinnati,  F.  Baraga  writes  as  follows  to  his  sister 
Amalia,  under  date  of  March  19th,  1831 : 

^'  .Ve  have  here  in  Cincinnati  two  congregations — the 
one  English-speaking,  the  other  German.  In  a  former 
letter  I  have  informed  you  that  the  number  of  German 
Catholics  here  is  quite  considerable,  and  I  have  to  hold 
divine  service  for  them  until  I  leave  for  the  Indian  mis- 
sion. Xow,  during  Lent,  I  preach  three  times  a  week,  as 
the  Bishop  has  enjoined  me  to  do,  namely,  on  Sundays, 
Wednesdays,  and  Fridays,  in  the  afternoon,  besides  which 
I  have  another  sermon  at  the  10  o'clock  Mass  on  Sundavs. 
In  addition  to  this  I  have  catechism  for  the  German  chil- 
dren thre€i  times  a  week — on  Tuesdays,  Thursdays,  and 
Saturdavs.  Moreover,  I  attend  sick-calls  and  have  other 
pastoral  duties  to  perform. 

"Whatever  spare  time  I  have  I  bestow  upon  improving 
my  knowledge  of  the  English  language.  What  I  have 
learned  of  this  language  in  Vienna  is  of  such  service  to 
me  now  that  I  can  understand  almost  all  I  read  in  English 
and  express  myself  in  conversation.     It  is  not  difficult  to 


LABORS  AT  CINCINNATI. 


105 


1 


learn  English  in  our  residence  here,  as  almost  all  our  con- 
versation is  carried  on  in  that  language. 

"Xot  long  ago  I  had  to  perform  a  missionary  duty  in 
English.  The  case  was  this:  A  negro,  who  could  speak 
but  English,  was  in  danger  of  losing  his  life  through  a 
contusion  that  happened  to  him  on  board  a  steamboat. 
This  negro  had  often  entertained  the  wish  to  be  baptized, 
but  had  never  executed  this  good  resolution  and  had  not 
belonged  hitherto  to  any  religious  denomination.  But 
when  this  misfortune  brought  him  to  his  death-bed,  the 
desire  to  be  baptized  and  become  a  Catholic  revived  in 
him  lively.  A  woman,  therefore,  came  to  our  house  to 
bring  an  English-speaking  priest  to  this  negro,  but  tliere 
was  none  just  then  at  hand.  As  the  woman  declared  that 
the  sick  man  ^xas  in  danger  of  death,  I  went  immediately 
with  her.  When  I  arrived  at  the  house  and  found  the 
negro  really  very  sick,  I  asked  him  whether  he  earnestly 
desired  to  be  baptized  and  become  a  Catholic.  He  declared 
expressly  that  such  was  his  wish,  whereuix>n  I  baptized 
him  after  some  preliminary  instruction  and  preparation. 
He  was  afterwards  more  :'*  ally  instructed  by  another  priest. 

"A  missionary  in  Xorth  America  should  know  almost 
all  languages  that  are  spoken  in  Europe,  for  people  of  all 
European  nations  are  to  be  met  with  here.  During  the 
short,  time  that  I  have  been  here,  I  have  used  in  the  per- 
formance of  my  pastoral  duties  all  the  languages  I  know 
except  the  Slavdiian.  I  Iwve  heard  several  confessions 
in  Italian  and  French,  and  God  gives  me  the  grace  not  to 
find  it  as  difficult  to  hear  French  and  Italian  confessions 
and  give  instructions  in  these  languages  as  it  was  in 
Slavonian  during  the  first  year  of  my  priestly  career. 

"I  have  also  not  omitted  to  learn  the  language  of  the 
Indians  a  little.  An  Indian  youth,  who  is  being  educated 
in  our  house,  occasionally  gives  me  instructions  in  that 
language,  which,  however,  is  not  easy  to  be  learned.     It 


106 


BT.  BEV.  FBEDEBIC  BABAGA. 


has  long  and  queer-sounding  words,  but  I  hear  it  is  poor 
in  words  and  very  simple.    Here  are  a  few : 

God  means  in  Ottawa — Kitschemanito. 

Heaven — \/akwing. 

Hell — Anamakamegong. 

Earth — Aki. 

Sun — Kisis. 

Moon — Tibikikisis. 

Day — Kischigak. 

:Night— Tibikot. 

Water — Nibisch 

Fire — Skote. 

Soul — Ninschibam. 

Father — I^osse. 

Priest — Makateokonoje. 

Mary,  mother  of  grace,  means  in  Ottawa — Maria, 
quenatsch  ningAvinam. 

Mary,  our  protectress,  pray  for  us,  means  in  Ottawa — 
Maria,  genawenimiiang !  gaganotamawischinam. 


1' :.;!!; 


II 


li;; 


"Today,  that  I  am  writing,  is  the  feast  of  St.  Joseph. 
Here  it  is  not  a  feast  of  obligation ;  otherwise  I  would  not 
have  had  time  to  write  to  you.  All  day  I  am  thinking  of 
my  dear  relatives  and  acquaintances  in  Europe.  I  love 
you  all  as  dearly  as  I  did  when  yet  in  Europe,  and  even 
at  this  great  distance  I  think  daily  of  you.  We  live,  it 
is  true,  in  different  parts  of  the  world,  and  the  immense 
ocean  rolls  between  us,  still  we  can  always  be  united  in 
sentiment  and  prayer  and  remain  united  until  the  divine 
love  unites  us  still  more  intimately  hereafter  in  the  king- 
dom of  everlasting  love." 

As  we  have  seen  above,  there  was  as  yet  no  separate 
German  Church  in  Cincinnati,  although  the  Germans  were 
even  at  that  time  numerous  enough  to  form  a  large  con- 
gregation  (in  1831).     The  ground,  however,  had  been 


LABORS  AT  CINCINNATI. 


107 


bought  for  a  German  Church,  but  the  people  were  very 
poor,  having  come  but  lately  to  Ohio,  and  being  mostly 
laborers  and  farmers.  There  was  thus  but  one  Catholic 
Church  in  Cincinnati  in  1831,  which  was  Bishop  Fen- 
wick's  cathedral. 

Father  Baraga  enumerates,  in  a  letter  dated  January 
22d,  1831,  the  churches  built  in  Ohio  during  Bishop  Fen- 
wick's  administration,  prior  to  1831 :  The  cathedral  in 
Cincinnati,  a  church  at  Lancaster,  Somerset,  Canton, 
Zanesville,  New  Lisbon,  one  in  Guernsey  County,  two 
churches  and  a  monastery  in  Perry  County,  and  a  church 
in  Brown  Co. ;  in  all,  ten  churches.  In  the  following 
places  churches  were  soon  to  be  erected:  A  German 
Church  in  Cincinnati,  another  church  in  Tiffin,  Clinton, 
a  Gennan  Church  in  Huron  County,  and  others. 

Bishop  Fenwick  (Edward),  who  was  himself  a  Domin- 
ican, led  with  his  priests  and  ecclesiastical  students  a  real 
monastic  life  in  a  poor,  delapidated  building,  dignified 
with  the  name  of  seminary.  At  five  in  the  morning  the 
bell  would  ring  and  all  would  rise.  Before  and  after  meals 
prayers  were  said  aloud,  as  is  customary  in  monastic 
houses;  after  meals  followed  a  short  adoration  of  the 
Blessed  Sacrament.  There  were  five  priests  and  four 
ecclesiastical  students,  one  of  them  a  full-blood  Ottawa 
Indian  from  Arbre  Croche,  Mich.,  with  the  name  of 
William  Maccatebinessi  (Blackbird),  a  youth  of  eighteen 
years,  who  could  speak  English  and  Ottawa,  and  was  to 
be  sent  back,  after  his  ordination,  to  his  people  in  the  wilds 
of  Michigan  to  work  at  their  conversion.  He  was  subse- 
quently sent  to  Rome  by  Bishop  Rese,  and  studied  with 
marked  distinction  in  the  Urban  college  of  the  Propaganda 
Fide,  where  he  died  on  the  25th  of  June,  1833.* 

*In  his  work:  "History  of  the  Ottawa  and  Chippewa  Indians  of 
Michigan,"  the  author,  A.  J.  Blackhird,  asserts  that  William 
Maeatebinessi  was  assassinated  at  college.  For  a  full  refutation  of 
this  groundless  assertion  see  note  in  appendix. 


;*!f*.tV-;v>J»9*!i.»5Mf- 


II'.    ' 


108 


BT.  BEY.  FBEDEBIC  BABAGA. 


The  residence  of  Bishop  Fenwick  and  his  priests  was 
very  poor  indeed.  With  the  money  received  from  the 
Leopoldine  Society,  Vienna,  he  had  erected,  prior  to 
Baraga's  arrival,  a  three-story  college,  at  a  cost  of  $7,500, 
and  Baraga  estimated  that  it  would  take  about  $4,000 
more  to  finish  and  furnish  it.  At  the  special  request  of 
his  beloved  Bishop,  F.  Baraga  wrote  a  letter  of  thanks  to 
the  above-named  society  for  their  generous  donations  to 
the  Cincinnati  diocese.  The  ver}^  first  donations  of  the 
Leopoldine  Society  were  for  the  diocese  of  Cincinnati.  In 
April,  1830,  they  sent  22,220  florins,  and  in  August  of  the 
same  year  again  12,200  florins ;  in  all,  34,420  florins.  We 
shall  show  hereafter  how  much  the  Catholic  Church  in  the 
United  States  owes  to  Austria,  to  the  generosity  of  her 
ruler,  of  her  nobility,  clergy  and  people. 


\'::i  i 


!  i 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

FATHER  BARAGA  SETS  OUT  FROM  CINCINNATI  FOR  HIS 
INDIAN  MISSION.  HIS  LABORS  AMONG  THE  WHITES 
ALONG  THE  ROUTE.       HE  ARRIVES  AT  ARBRE  CROC  HE. 


As  we  have  before  remarked,  Bishop  Fenwick  told  F. 
Baraga,  upon  his  arrival  in  Cincinnati,  that  he  would  take 
him  along  in  the  spring,  when  visiting  the  Indian  missions 
of  his  diocese,  and  duly  install  him  amongst  his  future 
spiritual  children.  The  burning  zeal  of  the  saintly  Father 
manifested  itself,  as  might  be  expected,  everywhere  on  this 
journey.  Wherever  there  was  an  occasion  to  preach  the 
word  of  God,  to  baptize  poor  children,  to  hear  confessions 
and  bring  back  sinners  to  God,  or  to  visit  the  sick,  Father 
Baraga  was  there.  He  gave  himself  no  rest  seeking  the 
poor  "lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel."  Of  him  it  may 
be  trulv  said  as  it  was  of  our  Lord:  "Pertransiit  bene- 
faciendo" — he  went  about  doing  good.  We  will  give  to 
the  kind  reader  the  particulars  of  this  journey  in  Baraga's 
own  words : 

"On  the  21st  of  April,  this  year" — his  letter  was  dated 
Arbre  Croche,  August  22d,  1831 — "I  set  out  from  Cin- 
cinnati to  betake  myself  to  the  mission  station  assigned 
to  me.  To  complete  my  narrative,  I  must  mention  here 
what  the  humility  of  my  Rev,  Bishop  passed  over  in  silence 
in  his  iormer  communications  to  the  Leopoldine  Society 
regarding  his  indefatigable  zeal  for  the  cause  of  God.  It 
is  this:  In  order  to  further  the  cause  of  the  Indian  mis- 
sion, the  Bishop  resolved  to  make  the  entire  journey  from 
Cincinnati  to  Arbre  Croche  with  me.    The  Indians  of  that 


110 


BT.  REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


:'f:i,! 


i 


place  are  acquainted  with  him;  he  had  l)een  there  once 
before.  They  call  him  the  Great  Black-robe  or  High 
Priest  and  have  great  respect  and  unbounded  confidence 
in  him.  It  was  therefore  very  good  that  he  came  here  with 
me  and  installed  me  in  their  midst.  The  distance  from 
Cincinnati  is  at  least  as  great  as  that  from  Vienna  to 
Naples. 

"Bishop  Fenwick  desired  me  to  leave  Cincinnati  a 
couple  of  weeks  before  him  in  order  to  hunt  up,  on  the 
way,  Catholic  families  and  give  them  an  opportunity  to 
perform  their  Easter  duty.  In  a  small  town  called 
Miamisburg,  thirty-five  miles  from  Cincinnati,  I  found 
the  first  Catholics,  and  they  were  Germans.  I  stayed  there 
a  fe>.  days,  said  Mass,  preached  three  times,  and  heard 
confessions.  I  learnt  here  that  there  was  another  Catholic 
family  twelve  miles  from  Miamisburg.  I  went  thither 
and  found  a  good  man  and  his  equally  worthy  wife  and 
six  children.  These  good  people  were  highly  rejoiced  at 
my  coming.  They  prepared  themselves  for  their  Easter 
confession,  and  the  next  day  both  of  them  and  their  two 
oldest  children  received  Holy  Communion.  I  preached 
there  likewise  in  a  large  room  of  his  house.  In  the  neigh- 
borhood there  are  many  Germans,  who,  it  is  true,  are  all 
Protestants,  but  who  gladly  hear  the  word  of  God,  even 
when  announced  by  a  Catholic  priest.  This  man  had 
informed  his  neighbors  that  a  Catholic  priest  had  arrived 
— as  I  was  informed,  I  am  the  first  Catholic  priest  that 
ever  came  to  that  part  of  the  country — and  thus  many 
assembled  to  hear  the  sermon.  They  were  satisfied  with 
the  doctrine  announced,  but  no  tree  falls  with  one  blow  I 

"Next  dav  this  man  conducted  me  three  miles  further 
into  the  woods  to  a  venerable  old  Irishman.  I  had  been 
informed  that  this  poor  old  man  of  eighty-one  years  had 
been  living  a  long  time  in  the  wilderness,  that  he  was  half 
blind  and  deaf,  and  that  for  many  years  he  had  had  no 
chance  to  receice  the  Holy  Sacraments.     The  evening 


'I  I 


LABORS  ON  THE  WAY  TO  ABBRE  CROCHE. 


Ill 


before  my  intended  visit  I  sent  a  boy  to  tell  him  that  a 
priest  would  come  the  next  morning  in  order  to  hear  his 
confession  and  give  him  the  Holy  Sacraments,  at  which 
the  good  old  man  was  very  much  rejoiced.  I  accordingly 
went  and  found  him  in  a  very  miserable  hut.  In  this 
shanty  resided  the  old  man,  his  wife,  and  three  other 
women  with  five  small  children.  The  poor  old  man,  who 
had  not  seen  a  priast  for  upwards  of  jifty  years,  received 
the  Holy  Sacraments,  of  which  he  had  stood  in  want  for 
so  long  a  time. 

"The  other  inhabitants  of  this  hut  were  not  Catholics. 
I  was  heartily  glad  to  have  been  able  to  give  spiritual  help 
to  this  poor  old  man,  who  stands  at  the  door  of  eternity. 
But  God  gave  me,  in  addition,  another  ineffable  missionary 
joy.  As  above  remarked,  there  were  five  small  children 
of  different  mothers  in  this  hut,  and  I  learnt  that  not  one 
of  those  children  had  yet  been  baptized.  Their  mothers 
are  unhappy  creatures,  who  profess  no  religion,  and,  con- 
sequently, did  not  trouble  themselves  about  having  their 
children  baptized,  as  there  are  many  such  in  this  wild  and 
too  free  country.  Besides,  no  priest  had  ever  before  pene- 
trated this  wilderness.  When  I  proposed  to  them  to  bap- 
tize their  children,  two  of  the  mothers  immediately  con- 
sented, but  the  third  did  not.  However,  she  soon 
acquiesced,  and  the  holy  baptismal  function  proceeded.  I 
thanked  God  most  heartily  and  begged  Him  at  the  same 
time  that,  if  it  w^ere  His  holy  will.  He  might  take  to  Him- 
self all  or  some  of  these  poor  creatures,  who  had  now 
become  His  children,  or,  that  He  might  let  them  become 
more  fortunately  situated  (for  their  religious  good)  than 
they  are  at  present. 

"I  then  returned  to  Miamisburg  and  journeyed  on 
further  to  another  pretty  large  city  named  Dayton.  Here 
I  awaited  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Fenwick.  In  the  meanwhile 
I  performed  missionary  duties  in  this  city.     There  are 


112 


RT.  REV.  FBBDERIC  BABAOA. 


■Silli! 


a. 


D! 


pi 

ii 


,Hi1;l 

■iilli 


but  few  Catholics  there  and  they  are  very  liikewann,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few. 

''On  the  first  of  May  I  said  Mass  in  the  house  of  the 
Catholic  with  whom  I  was  stopping.  In  the  afternoon  I 
preached  in  a  Protestant  Church.  There  are  many  Ger- 
mans here  of  all  sects.  It  appeared  to  me  very  singular 
to  preach  in  a  Protestant  Church  and  before  a  Protestant 
congregation.  Besides,  the  sermon  was  preached  in  my 
secular  clothes,  without  surplice  and  stole.  Alas !  It  is 
reallv  a  miserv  the  wav  religion  fares  in  this  country.  In 
addition  to  the  many  sects  that  are  found  here,  there  are 
everywhere  a  great  number  of  atheists.  They  are  neither 
baptized,  nor  have  they  any  kind  of  faith  or  religion. 
There  are  many  good-natured  people  to  be  found  amongst 
them,  who  have  grown  up  in  this  sad  state  solely  through 
neglect  on  the  part  of  their  parents  and  through  want  of 
priests.  And  now  they  remain  in  their  infidelity  because 
they  know  nothing  better.  Many  of  these  unhappy  crea- 
tures might  easily  be  gained  for  God  and  the  Church,  if 
there  were  but  more  priests  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  them. 
/  intended  to  ash  my  Bishop  for  permission  to  let  me 
always  travel  around  in  the  country  to  seek  such  lost  souls 
and  stay  with  each  one  until  he  would  be  thoroughly 
instructed,  baptized,  and  strengthened  in  his  holy  faith, 
and  then  go  on  further.  How  many  souls  might  I  not 
gain  for  God !  When  in  Cincinnati  I  deliberated  about 
this  matter  with  Verv  Rev.  Vicar-General  Rese,  but  he 
told  me  it  would  be  more  useful  and  better  for  me  to  go 
to  the  wild  Indians ;  that  the  prospects  there  were  brighter 
still.  TIence  in  this  regard  all  I  can  do  is  to  pray  God  to 
send  soon  several  laborers  into  this  abandoned  part  of  His 
vineyard,  that  so  many  immortal  souls,  redeemed  with  His 
precious  Blood,  may  not  perish." 

The  above  reflections  show  the  heart  of  a  true  pastor. 
Not  ease  and  comfort,  not  money  or  honors,  souls,  immor- 
tal souls,  redeemed  with  the  precious  Blood  of  Jesus,  these 


f!l     I 


LABORS  ON  THl  WAT  TO  ABBBE  CROCHE. 


iia 


were  all  that  F.  Baraga  sought.  To  the  true  pastor  the 
soul  of  the  poorest  Indian  or  negro  child  is  as  precious  as 
that  of  the  greatest  king  or  millionaire. 

Father  Baraga  continues:  "From  Dayton  I  set  out, 
in  company  with  my  Bishop,  for  Detroit,  where  we  arrived 
on  the  15th  of  May,  and  where  we  remained  five  days. 
There  are  many  German  and  French  Catholics  in  this  city. 
I  spent  my  time  in  preaching  and  hearing  confessions. 

"From  Detroit  we  traveled  by  water  to  Michilimacki- 
nac,  where  I  did  not  delay  long.  On  the  28th  of  May 
(1831),  I  arrived  at  Arbre  Croche,  and  shortly  after  came 
also  my  Bishop.  Happy  day  which  placed  me  among  the 
Indians,  with  whom  I  will  now  remain  uninterruptedly 
to  the  last  breath  of  my  life,  if  such  be  the  most  holy  will 
of  God  I" 


'11 


J« 


'  ii 

t 


■ 

'I 
: 


ill 

A 


f 


»; 


f! 


M 


•f  ■  ^ 


m 


'■•'  i 


1? 


if'! 
I 


111 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


LABOKS  OF  FATllEli  BAKAGA  IN  AKBUL:  CKOCllK. 

The  good  Indiana  of  Arbro  Cimx-Iio  wore  highly  pknised 
at  tho  arrival  of  their  new  pastor.  They  were  filled  with 
unbounded  joy  when,  at  Jiaraga's  first  Mass  in  their  rude 
chapel,  Bishop  Fenwiek  told  them  that  he  would  leave  him 
with  them  and  that  their  new  Father  would  alwavs  remain 
with  them. 

Tho  newly  converted  Indians  gave  their  new  pastor 
great  consolation.  In  his  report  to  the  Leopoldine  Society 
of  IS-Jl  he  praises  their  docility,  Inunble  and  ready  obedi- 
ence, piety  and  child-like  attachment  to  him.  They 
always  called  him  with  the  endearing  name  of  Father  and 
behaved  towards  him  like  good  children  do  towards  their 
father.  Whatever  he  told  them  to  do  was  immediatelv 
done  and  the  order  of  divine  service  punctually  observed. 

At  five  in  the  morning  the  Angelns  bell  was  rung  and 
the  whole  village  assembled  at  the  church  for  morning 
prayers,  which  were  read  aloud  by  one  of  the  head-chiefs. 
Then  followed  Holy  ^lass,  at  which  a  great  number 
assisted  every  day.  Every  evening  the  bell  was  rung 
again  and  all  assembled  for  night  prayers,  at  which  they 
sang  i)ious  hymns  in  their  native  tongue.  After  devotions, 
he  gave  them  a  short  catechetical  instruction,  which,  of 
course,  the  poor,  ignorant,  but  well-meaning,  Indians 
needed  very  much.  On  Sundavs  and  holy  davs  of  obliira- 
tion  they  had  divine  service  four  times,  namely,  early 
morning  prayers  in  common,  then  High  Mass  at  10  a.  m. 
At  3   o'clock  in  the  afternoon  were   Vespers   and   cate- 


i; 


X 


a; 


n 


II 


' 


u 


i 


■K  f  ' 


?|.i 


lii: 


M 


LABORS  IN  AKBIIB  CKOCUE. 


115 


chisni,  aiul  night  ])niy('rs  at  sunset.     Truly  this  was  a 
niodt'l  Christian  connnuiiitv. 

In   the   hcgiiining   F.    JJarai»a,    liko   all    niissionarios, 
eni{)h>v('(l  the  service  of  an  interpreter.     Luckily,  he  had 
an  Indian  who  could  sjx'ak  French  tlueutlv.     When  [)reaeh- 
ing,  F.  liaraga  would  say  a  few  sentences  in  French  and 
stop;  then  his  dusky  interpreter  would  tell  his  country- 
nu'u  what  the  Father  had  said.      He  likewise  heard  con- 
fessions in  the  same  way.     The  j)eople  were  satistiwl  at 
this,  as  they  knew  that  their  heloved  Father  could  not  as 
yet  si)eak  their  language  and  that  the  interpreter  was  a 
g(M)d  Christian  and  well  instructed.     The  writer  had  to  do 
the  same  thing  when  he  preached  and  heard  confer.. ions 
among  the  ^Menominees  at  Keshemi  in  the  winter  of  18G.5- 
18(10.      Although    confessing   through    an    interpreter    is 
highly  disagreeable  to  Avhite  ]K'.tple,  it  docs  not  seem  to 
be  so  re[)ugnant  to  the  Indian,  provided  the  interpreter 
be  a  person  of  great  virtue  and  discretion.     F.  Baraga 
praised  his  people  for  going  often  and  willingly  to  confes- 
sion.    Scarcely  a  day  i)asse(l  without  some  one  going  to 
confession.     Between   (^hristmas  and  ]\"ev;  Year  all  the 
communicants,  to  the  nund)er  of  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
seven,  a})proached  the  Holy  Sacraments.     This  tilled  the 
heart  of  the  pious  pastor  with  sweet  joy  and  consolation. 
He  also  kept  U])  the  school,  started  by  his  predecessor,  Rev. 
F.  Dcjean.     He  had  at  first  forty  children,  boys  and  girls, 
whom  he  and  his  interpreter  instructed  in  reading,  writ- 
ing, and  the  catechism. 

Speaking  of  his  labors  at  Arbre  Croche  during  the  fall 
and  winter  of  1831,  he  says : 

"It  is  unspeakably  consoling  and  joyful  to  me  to  be 
here.  The  conversions  of  pagan  Indians,  w^o  live  around 
here,  are  so  numerous  that  in  the  short  space  of  two  months 
and  a  half  that  I  have  been  here,  seventy-two  Indians,  chil- 
dren and  adults,  have  been  baptized ;  among  them  are  ven- 
erable old  men  of  sixty  and  seventy  years.     I  make,  from 


116 


RT.  BEV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


1":',;. 


'i!|f, 

Si 

§ 


■  m 
■••I:: 

if::: 


/So; 


i:' 


■ ,  : 


'K:  ■ 


time  to  time,  excursions  into  +^  oountry  with  my  inter- 
preter, and  when  I  find  a  wigwam  I  enter.  In  some  wig- 
wams I  find  only  Christians,  in  many  they  are  all  pagans, 
and  in  some  they  are  mixed.  Where  I  find  pagans  I  try 
to  show  them  the  utility  and  necessity  of  the  Christian 
religion,  which  God  Himself  has  taught  us.  I  have  often 
the  joyful  consolation  of  seeing  how  deep  the  word  of  God 
penetrates  into  the  hearts  of  these  poor  savages  and  how 
they  resolve  to  embrace  a  religion  which  can  make  them 
happy  for  time  and  eternity.  I  then  take  care  to  have 
thetio  catechumens  instructed  in  the  first  rudiments  of  the 
Christian  faith  by  others  who  are  already  Christians  and 
live  near  them,  and  then  they  are  solemnly  received  into 
the  Church.  I  cannot  express  with  what  heartfelt  joy  and 
grateful  feelings  I  baptize  newly  converted  pagans,  esp&- 
cially  when  there  are  several  to  be  baptized  together.  On 
one  day  I  had  seven,  and  on  the  12th  of  July — O  happy, 
never  to  be  forgotten  day ! — I  baptized  at  one  time  eleven 
pagans. 

"The  inhabitants  oi  this  part  of  the  country  are  real 
heathens  and  idolators.  They  adore  not  only  the  sun  and 
the  moon,  but  have,  moreover,  their  household  gods,  to 
whom  thev  offer  solemn  sacrifice,  at  the  conclusion  of 
w^hich  they  have  their  sacrificial  banquet.  They  are  full 
of  idolatrous  superstitions  and  have  bags  full  of  all  kinds 
of  supei^Jtious  objects,  of  which  they  make  use  at  their 
sacrifices  and  other  pagan  ceremonies.  Now,  w^hen  a 
pagan  havirg  such  a  bag  is  converted,  he  brings  this 
devil's  bag  to  the  missionaiy  to  be  burnt.  ISTot  long  ago 
such  a  bag,  full  of  superstitious  articles,  was  brought  to 
be  burnt  in  front  of  our  church.  I  hope  that  the  Lord 
of  hosts,  who  alone  should  be  adored,  receives  with  great 
satisfaction  such  burnt  offerings.  The  pagan  who  brought 
me  this  sack  to  be  burnt  is  one  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Ottawa 
nation.  I  hope  that  his  conversion,  which  caused  quit^  a 
commotion,  will  bring  about  that  of  a  great  many  others. 


LABORS  IN  ARBBE  CROGHE. 


117 


God,  the  sole  cause  and  perfecter  of  all  good,  be  a  thousand 
times  praised  for  all  the  good  He  allows  to  be  accomplished 
here." 

Father  Baraga's  church,  school  and  house  were  no 
architectural  beauties.  They  were  the  work  of  Indian 
carpenters,  whose  principal,  if  not  only,  tool,  was  their 
axe  or  hatchet.  The  'oofs  of  these  buildings  were  covered 
with  birch-bark,  and  when  it  rained  the  water  came  in 
through  many  a  hole.  On  such  occasions  he  would  spread 
his  cloak  over  the  table,  on  which  he  kept  his  books  and 
papers,  and  open  his  umbrella  and  put  it  above  his  bed  to 
keep  it  dry ;  he  himself  would  sit  down  in  that  part  of  the 
room  where  it  rained  the  least.  Truly  his  was  a  poor,  hard 
life ;  a  life  full  of  privations,  yet  he  sa  vs  he  felt  happier 
in  his  little  room,  notwithstanding  all  hardships  and 
miseries,  than  many  others  in  their  gilt  palaces.  "Super- 
abundo  gaudio  in  omni  tribulatione  nostra" — I  exceed- 
ingly abound  with  joy  in  all  our  tribulation. 

Baraga's  church  was  comparatively  large  and  could 
seat  about  four  hundred  persons.  It  was  a  very  poor  build- 
ing, built  of  logs  and  covered  with  bark.  He  had  near  by 
two  small  missions,  which  he  often  visited.  In  one  of  these 
places  not  only  the  roof,  but  the  whole  church  was  made 
of  birch-bark,  like  the  common  Indian  wigwam ;  it  was, 
in  Indian  parlance,  a  birch-bark  prayer-wigwam. 

He  found  the  Ottawa  language  at  first  very  difficult, 
not  having  any  books  to  aid  him  in  the  study  of  the  lan- 
guage. His  interpreter,  hoAvever,  was  of  great  help  to  him, 
and  with  his  assistance  he  worked  at  composing  an  Ottawa 
dictionary  and  grammar.  He  also  intended  to  compose  an 
Indian  catechism  with  prayers  and  hymns,  which  Bishop 
Fenwick  promised  to  have  printed  in  Cincinnati. 

During  the  summer  and  fall  of  1831  the  number  of 
conversions  was  so  great  that  nearly  all  the  people  of  that 
place  were  now  either  Christians  or  catechumens  under 
instruction,  and  soon  to  be  baptized.     By  the  4th  of  Jan- 


f  '  i  ''ft I 


US 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


iiary,  1832,  that  is,  in  less  than  six  months,  he  had  131 
converts,  mostly  adults.  It  was  his  intention  to  leave 
Arbre  Croche  as  soon  as  most  of  the  pagans  were  converted, 
and  go  north,  where,  as  he  was  told,  there  were  a  great 
many  pagans  who  had  never  heard  or  seen  a  missionary, 
Of  course,  there  were  sovne  pagans  at  Arbre  Croche  and 
in  the  neighborhood  who  were  hardened  in  paganism  and 
sin.  ^o  missionary  can  convert  all.  Even  our  Lord,  the 
great  model  of  all  tru(>  missionaries,  did  not  convert  the 
hardened  pharisees  and  scribes.  Faith  is  a  gift  freely 
offered  to  all,  but  it  is  not  forced  upon  anybody.  Of  the 
Apostle's  ministry  it  is  said :  ''bredidc^runt  quoti  quot 
praeordinati  erant  ad  vitam  aeternam,"  "As  many  as  were 
ordained  to  life  everlasting  believed." 

"I  cannot  thank  the  love  of  (iod  enough,"  he  savs. 
^'that  lie  called  me  to  a  country  where  there  are  still  so 
many  pagans  and  so  few  preachers  of  the  holy  faith. 
There  is  but  one  priest  in  the  neighborhood,  who  is  abont 
fifty  miles  awiy  from  me,  at  Mackinac.  The  other  mis- 
sionaries are  400  to  500  miles  awav,  and  the  further  north 
one  goes,  the  fewer  missionaries  does  he  find,  and  the  more 
pagans.  Oh,  how  glad  I  am  and  how  thankful  to  God  that 
I  have  left  a  country  which  has  a  superabundance  of 
priests  and  have  come  here  where  I  can  count  my  fellow- 
priests,  Avho  are  hundreds  of  miles  away !  If  some  of  my 
younger  fellow-priests  would  know  what  happiness  Indian 
missionaries  experience,  and  how  many  occasions  they 
find  to  work  at  the  salvation  of  tlieir  fellow-men,  certainly 
some  of  them  would  resolve  to  brave  all  the  hardships  and 
dangers  and  come  to  this  country  in  order  to  preach  the 
word  of  life  to  the  heathens,  and  make  them  Catholics, 
and  thus  bring  them  to  eternal  life.  It  is  true,  many  hard- 
sh^'ps  are  connected  with  the  missions  in  this  country,  but 
they  are  far  outweighed  by  the  consolations  and  spiritual 
joys  which  are  enjoyed  here." 


;l    :i! 


LABORS  IN  ABBRE  GROOHE. 


119 


May  these  saintly  words  of  Baraga  find  a  responsive 
echo  in  the  hearts  of  many  p  young,  noble-hearted  priest  I 
"The  harvest  is  great,  but  the  laborers  are  few."  There 
are  about  300,000  Indians  in  the  United  States  and 
Alaska.  Of  this  number  a  great  many  are  still  pagans. 
The  Jesuits,  Benedictines,  Franciscans  and  some  secular 
priests  are  doing  noble  work  among  them ;  still  much 
remains  to  be  done. 

Although  Father  Baraga  had  such  great  success,  this 
did  not  elate  him  nor  make  him  proud.  lie  was  little  in 
his  own  eyes.  All  our  Indians  praise  his  ^reat  humility. 
We  see  this  beautiful  virtue  shine  forth  in  all  his  letters. 
They  breathe  humility,  gratitude  to  God  and  his  bene- 
factors, ardent  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  souls  and  great  love 
and  kindness  towards  the  poor  Indians.  He  was  truly  a 
man  of  God,  a  man  of  prayer,  gifted  with  apostolic  vir- 
tues ;  hence  God's  blessings  attended  his  work  evervwhere. 

Speaking  of  his  labors  during  the  winter  of  1  S3 1-1 83 'J, 
he  says:  "Indescribable  is  the  goodness  of  our  God, 
which  reveals  itself  here  so  much,  I  am  infinitely  thank- 
ful that  He  has  deigned  to  use  a  poor  man  as  an  instrument 
for  manifesting  to  these  poor  heathens  His  merciful  love 
and  grace.  Conversions  continue  steadily  and  those  con- 
verted are  very  good  Christians.  They  live  in  peace  and 
brotherlv  love  and  have  an  extraordinary  fear  of  commit- 
They  like  very  much  to  go  to  confession  and  keep 
oftener  and  oftener.  Some  days  I  have  from 
twentv  to  thirtv  confessions." 

"I  await  with  great  longing  the  near  arrival  of  spring, 
for  then  I  will  again  have  more  numerous  conversions  and 
baptisms.  There  are  many  pagan  Indians  in  this  neigh- 
borhood who  promised  me,  last  summer  and  autumn, 
when  I  went  to  seek  them  in  their  wigwams  and  forests 
and  spoke  to  them  about  the  Christian  religion,  that  they 


ting  sm. 
going 


IH 


Ml 


I    \\ 


! 


1  i 


120 


BT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


would  embrace  it  and  be  baptized  next  spring.  Many  of 
them  are  being  instructed  during  this  winter  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  our  holy  faith  by  such  of  their  fellow  Indians 
as  are  already  converted,  in  order  to  receive  Baptism 
immediately  this  spring." 


H 


m 


ill:: 


m 


M' 


ijirj; 


I  ! 


■  «jl  !  -'I 
in ,!  Ii 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


FATHER  Baraga's  visit  to  beaver  island. 

In  the  early  part  of  spring,  1832,  a  Christian  Indian 
of  another  part  of  the  country  came  to  tell  Baraga  that  he 
had  conversed  with  many  of  his  pagan  countrymen  about 
the  Christian  religion,  and  that  they  had  assured  hira  that 
they,  too,  would  become  Christians  as  soon  as  a  priest 
would  come  and  instruct  them.  This  made  our  good 
Indian  so  happy  that  he  made  a  journey  of  three  days  to 
tell  the  Father  the  joyful  news.  He  invited  the  mission- 
ary to  visit  that  section  during  the  coming  spring  and  as- 
sured him  that  he  could  establish  quite  a  mission  there. 
F.  Baraga  praised  his  zeal  for  taking  such  an  interest  in 
the  eternal  welfare  of  his  countrymen,  gave  him  some  pic- 
tures, and  bade  him  return  home  and  strive  to  keep  his 
people  in  iheir  good  disposition.  From  two  other  Indian 
villages  came  the  same  joyful  tidings.  The  good  Father's 
expectations  were  not  disappointed.  Between  Easter 
Sunday,  April  22d,  and  June  24th,  that  is,  in  two  months, 
he  baptized  one  hundred  and  nine  pagans,  mostly  adults. 
Several  of  these  converts  were  venerable  old  men,  who,  at 
the  brink  of  the  grave,  so  to  say,  received  the  grace  of 
spiritual  birth  in  Jesus  Christ  and  with  it  eternal  life. 

He  writes :  "Since  the  conversion  of  the  pagans  was 
the  only  motive  I  had  in  leaving  my  dear  fatherland  and 
coming  to  this  vild  country,  I  feel  great  satisfaction  and 
experience  unspeakable  spiritual  delights  at  the  great  suc- 
cess the  Lord  of  the  harvest  gives  to  my  labors.  I  cannot 
sufficiently  thank  God  for  coming  here,  where  so  much 
good  can  be  done.     Even  if  I  would  have  nothing  else  to 


fi 

1  ■ 

ii 

1 

i 

1 

1 
1 

II 

i' 

I    i 


It 


!    ■    / 


!■  v:^>.:  *' 


^1"'] 


122 


ET.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


do  for  the  rest  of  my  life  than  to  keep  and  confirm  in  the 
faith  the  Indians  thus  far  converted,  I  wonld  be  perfectly 
satisfied.  I  hope,  however,  that  God  will  give  me  the 
grace  to  convert  many  more  pagans  to  the  true  faith,  and 
bring  them  through  the  saving  teachings  of  Christianity 
to  civilization." 

During  the  past  winter  F.  Baraga  had  often  made 
enquiries  whether  there  were  any  other  Indian  villages 
near  by.  lie  Avas  informed  that  there  was  one  a  day's 
journey  distant,  another  a  day  and  a  half,  and  a  third  a 
distance  of  three  days.  As  soon  as  his  Indian  parishion- 
ers at  Arbre  Crocho  had  performed  their  Easter  duty,  he 
made  a  trip  to  Beaver  Island,  a  beautiful  island  in  Lake 
Michiffan.  The  island  is  of  considerable  size  and  named 
Beaver  Island  from  the  manv  beavers  that  used  to  be  found 

t.' 

there.  There  was  a  small  Indian  village  on  this  island, 
consisting  of  eighteen  wigwams.  The  principal  source  of 
support  was  fishing  and  making  maple  sugar. 

During  the  past  winter  one  of  these  poor  Indians  had 
imbibed  some  knowledge  of  Christianity  by  conversing 
with  some  of  his  Christian  countrvmen.  He  came  after- 
Avards  to  Arbre  Croche  and  was  baptized.  He  proved  to 
be  a  verv  good  Christian.  When  about  to  return  to  his 
island-home,  F.  Baraga  requested  him  to  tell  his  people 
that  he,  Baraga,  would  visit  them  the  next  spring  and 
preach  to  them  the  word  of  God.  So  in  due  time  the  zeal- 
ous missionary  embarked  in  a  small  sail-boat  Avith  some 
Christian  Indians  of  Arbre  Croche.  We  will  give  his 
own  account  of  the  journey : 

"My  heart  beat  sensibly  when  we  approached  the 
island.  I  have  a  white  flag  with  a  red  cross  in  the  middle, 
w^hich  I  unfurl  to  the  winds  when  going  to  a  mission,  so 
as  to  make  the  boat  of  the  missionary  recognizable.  We 
had  a  favorable  wind  when  sailing  toward  the  island. 
Lovely  floated  in  the  wind  the  friendly  banner  of  the  cross 
and  announced  the  coming  of  the  minister  of  the  Cruci- 


VISIT  TO  BEAVER  ISLAND. 


128 


fied.  As  soon  as  the  island-dwellers — who,  as  all  savages, 
have  remarkably  sharp  eyes — saw  and  recogTiized  my  ban- 
ner far  in  the  distance,  the  head-chief  caused  his  flag  to 
be  innnediately  hoisted  over  his  wigwam.  My  Indians  of 
Arbre  Croche  immediately  noticed  the  flag  of  the  head- 
chief  and  interpreted  this  as  a  very  good  sign,  which  made 
me  feel  at  ease. 

"Finally,  when  we  approached  Beaver  Island,-  I  saw 
a  number  of  these  pagans  hasten  to  the  shore  to  bid  us  wel- 
come. The  men  fired  a  double  salute  with  their  guns  to 
show  how  much  they  rejoiced  at  the  coming  of  the  mis- 
sionary. Scarcely  had  I  stepped  ashore,  when  all  the  men 
came  and  shook  hands  with  me  to  bid  me  welcome.  They 
then  conducted  me  to  their  village,  composed  of  poor  birch- 
bark  wigwams.  I  first  enteied  the  wigwam  of  the  head- 
chief,  where  a  number  of  these  poor  savages  assembled 
and  could  not  satisfy  their  eyes  gazing  at  the  Black-robe, 
for  they  had  never  seen  a  priest  before. 

''When  a  person  has  any  business  to  transact  with  the 
Indians  of  this  countrv  he  must  observe  certain  formali- 
ties.  Hence  I  did  not  tell  them  immediately  what  I  had 
to  say  to  tliem,  but  conversed  on  other  different  subjects. 
At  last  I  requested  the  head-chief  to  convene  next  day  a 
i>Taud  council." 

An  Indian  council  is  called  in  Chippewa  :  Sagasswaidi- 
win,  a  smoking  together,  because  at  such  public  delibera- 
tions every  Indian  smokes  whilst  listening  to  the  speeches 
made  by  the  tribal  orator  and  other  speakers.  Women  are 
excluded  from  such  public  assemblies. 

The  Father  continues :  "I  told  him" — the  head-chief 
of  the  island — ''that  I  would  speak  to  the  people  about 
important  matters.  So  next  day  they  all  assembled  and  I 
made  them  a  speech,  in  which  I  briefly  and  clearly  showed 
them  the  necessity  and  benefits  of  the  Christian  religion, 
and  finally  requested,  the  chief  to  answer.  The  latter  did 
so  through  his  orator,  assuring  me  that  they  were  very 


l! 


it 
:     I 


L 


124 


RT.  REV.    FRE7)ERIC   BARAQA. 


^t 


:  f-- 


!'Si; 


I 

i 


1 


much  pleased  and  reckoned  themselves  happy  at  seeing  a 
priest  on  their  island  and  that  they  desired  most  earnestly 
to  emhrace  the  (Christian  faith.  You  can  imagine  what 
a  heartfelt  joy  this  answer  caused  to  the  missionary.  I 
remained  some  time  with  them,  instructed  them,  and  the 
11th  of  May  was  the  happy  day  on  which  I  baptized 
twenty-two  of  these  Indians. 

"From  there  I  went  to  another  small  village,  which  is 
two  days'  journey  from  Beaver  Island,  on  the  other  side  of 
Lake  Michigan,  in  the  territory  of  the  Northwest.  As  I 
Lu>  e  remarked  above,  I  had  last  wintcv  an  opportunity  to 
send  word  to  the  Indians  ot  that  village  that  I  would  visit 
them  during  spring.  Hence  when  I  arrived  there  they 
received  me  in  the  most  friendly  manner  and  rejoiced 
exceedingly  at  the  coming  of  the  missionary.  The  good 
feeling  of  these  poor  savages,  who  had  romnined  pagans 
so  long  solely  because  no  preacher  of  the  faith  had  ever 
before  come  to  them,  filled  my  heart  with  inexpressible 
sadness  and  joy.  I  was  deeply  xnoved  and  surprised  when 
I  saw  that  these  good  people,  in  whose  hearts  the  antici- 
pating grace  of  vocation  to  the  holy  faith  worked  so 
mightily,  had  begun  to  build  a  little  church,  Indian- 
fashion,  of  logs  and  bark,  even  before  I  had  come  to  them ! 
They  had  not  thought  that  I  would  so  soon  fulfill  my 
promise  of  coming  and  seeing  them,  and  that  was  the 
reason  why  they  had  not  as  yet  completed  their  church. 
When  I  saw  them  working  so  diligently  at  their  church, 
I,  ^oo,  began  to  work,  and  my  companions,  nine  in  nu  n- 
ber,  encouraged  by  my  example,  aided  in  the  good  work, 
and  we  finished  the  church  that  very  day.  The  next  day 
I  called  them  all  together  and,  havmg  first  bkssed  the 
church,  I  said  Holy  Mass  in  it  and  preached.  I  cannot 
describe  with  what  deep  emotion  and  gratitude  towards 
Ood  I  performed  the  ceremonies  of  the  church.  The 
thought:  In  this  wild  place,  in  this  primeval  forest, 
where  but  lately  only  the  cry  of  savages  was  haard  and 


E 


VISIT  TO  BEAVEK  ISLAND. 


125 


idolatrous  sacrifices  offered  to  the  wicked  spirits,  now  in 
this  same  place  stands  a  temple  of  the  living  God,  in  which 
the  immaculate  Lamb  of  God  is  offered  to  the  heavenly 
Father — this  thought  affected  me  so  strongly  that  I  wept 
tears  of  the  deepest  emotion  and  I  could  not  find  words 
with  which  to  thank  God.  Happy  are  we  that  He  needs 
not  the  expression  of  words !  He  sees  our  hearts !  This 
little  church  is  built  but  of  logs  and  bark  and  is  in  want 
of  all  that  can  please  the  eye  or  express  artistic  taste ;  yet 
it  appears  to  me  to  be  a  more  precious  temple  than  so  many 
churches  in  Europe,  richly  decorated  with  gold  and  works 
of  art,  and  which  are  often  desecrated  by  the  lukewarm- 
ness  and  misbehavior  of  those  that  visit  them. 

"I  dedicated  this  little  church  to  tlie  honor  of  God 
under  the  name  and  patronage  of  His  Virginal  Mother 
Mary.  When  I  made — in  Europe — the  resolution  to  con- 
secrate my  life  to  the  (Indian)  mission,  I  promised  our 
dear  heavenly  Mother  that  I  would  dedicate  the  first 
church,  which  I  would  bless  amongst  the  Indians,  to  her 
protective  I^ame,  for  I  am  convinced  that  she  continually 
prays  to  her  divine  Son  for  the  success  of  our  mission. 

"I  remained  quite  a  long  time  with  these  good  Indians, 
instructing  them  in  the  doctrines  of  religion,  and  said 
Mass  every  day.  All  the  Indians  of  this  place,  large  and 
small,  old  and  young,  embraced  the  Christian  religion  with 
one  solitary  exception,  namely,  an  old  man,  to  whom  God 
seem?  to  have  denied  the  grace  of  faith  on  account  of  his 
pridf.  lie  is  unwilling  to  believe  aiiybody  except  his  own 
verv  weak  reason.  He  maintains  stubbornly  that  he  lived 
once  before  on  earth,  that  this  is  his  second  life,  and  after 
ending  this  life  he  wants  to  go  where  his  pagan  forefathers 
are.''  This  last  remark  is  a  common  saying  with  pagan 
Indians. 

"The  25th  of  May  wrs  for  these  Indians  the  happy 
day,  on  which  they  were  r^enerated  by  water  and  the 
Holy  Ghost  unto  eternal  life.    I  baptized  on  that  day  nine- 


I  i 


126 


ItT.  REV.  FUEDERIC   BAHAGA. 


f  11 


■i:'^ 

^!^,  '  il 


■■!  I' 

.III 


I 


I    .  I'l 


I  I 


il 


teen  pagans.  Tlianks  bo  to  ihe  gocxl  Shej)lKM*(l,  who  has  so 
in(;r('ifiilly  M  these  poor  lost  sheep  to  llis  fohl.  Thanks 
be  also  to  ^lary  the  loving  iM other  of  grace,  who  continu- 
ally })rays  for  the  conversion  of  pagans. 

"After  Baptism  they  brought  to  me  all  their  idolatrous 
articles,  which  they  had  hitherto  used  in  their  pagan  sacri- 
fices. I  had  a  fire  mad(^  and  burnt  all  theise  abominations 
of  i)aganiHm  as  a  holocaust  to  llim,  the  Almighty,  the 
Eternal,  to  whom  alone  sacrifice  is  due  and  to  whouL  be 
praise  and  glory  forever!  Before  leaving  these  g\x>d  and 
happy  people  I  distributed  among  them  a  great  nuuiy 
religious  pictures  and  promised  to  visit  them  from  time 
to  time  in  order  to  preserve  and  strengthen  them  in  the 
faith,  which  promise  consoled  them  very  much.* 

"From  there  I  returned  to  Beaver  Island,  where  they 
also  brought  me  all  objects  used  in  their  idolatrous  sacri- 
fices, which  I  likewise  burnt.  The  newlv  converted 
Indians  determined  to  erect  a  snuiU  chapel.  At  the  present 
time  they  had  constructed  a  kind  of  chapel  of  logs,  birch- 
bark  and  units,  in  which  I  daily  said  Mass  with  grateful 
feelings  and  gave  religious  instructions  three  times  every 
day.  Six  more  pagans  were  converted  and  baptized. 
However,  there  are  yet  many  pagans  in  this  island  who 
refuse  to  be  converted.  One  dav  a  number  of  them  came 
to  my  tent :  some  of  them  were  quite  naked  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  ])iece  of  mat  tied  around  their  waist ;  this  was  all 
their  idothing.  One  of  them  spoKC,  and  in  a  shrill,  monoto- 
nous lone  nuule  a  very  foolish  speech,  in  which  he  declared 
to  me,  in  the  name  of  all  those  who  had  come  with  him, 
that  tliey  did  not  want  to  embrace  the  Christian  religion, 
but  would  live  and  die  in  the  religion  of  their  forefathers. 
I  answered  him  mildly  and  forcibly,  and  I  hope  that  in 
the  course  of  time  also  these  will  be  converted  to  the  truth. 
"''^  then  returned  home.      The  Christians  of  Arbre 

*Thi?  mission  was  located  at  Manistique,  as  is  evident  from  F, 
Baraga's  description,  not  ISln   istee. 


VISIT  TO  BEAVER  ISLAND. 


127 


Crocho  were  very  much  rejoiced  when  they  heard  that  so 
many  of  their  countrymen  had  now  embraced  the  Christian 
religion.  I  did  not  remain  long  at  home,  but  wont  to  the 
third  village,  spoken  of  before,  about  a  day  and  a  half 
journey  distant,  in  the  oi)posite  direction.  I  went  there, 
although  I  had  heard  that  those  Indians  were  outspoken 
enemies  of  the  Christian  religion.  The  reason  is  this: 
These  Indians  are  incited  to  and  kept  in  a  hostile  disposi- 
tion against  religion  through  wicked  fur-traders,  who  visit 
them  often  and  bring  them  rum  for  their  peltries.  For 
these  godless  traders  know  very  well  that  Indians,  when 
they  embrace  Christianity,  nmst  give  up  entirely  the  use 
of  intoxicating  liquors,  and  especially  drunkeness,  a  vice 
to  which  pagan  Indians  are  much  addicted.  Xow  in  order 
to  make  a  profitable  irade  with  the  Indians,  they  endeavor 
in  every  possible  way  to  make  them  averse  to  Christianity 
and  keep  them  in  paganism.  However,  I  went  there  and 
spoke  to  them  of  the  Christian  religion,  but  I  found  little 


hearing. 


Still  God  gave  me  the  consolation  of  not  having 


gone  there  entirely  in  vain.  There  were  five  pagans  who 
took  God's  call  to  heart.  They  were  instructed  and  brtp- 
tized  on  the  3d  of  June.  I  stayed  some  days  longer  with 
them  and  gave  them  additional  instruction  in  religion  and 
read  Mass.  After  promising  to  visit  them  again  in  the 
near  future,  I  returned  to  Arbre  Crocho. 

"Here  in  Arbre  Croehe  the  infinitely  merciful  God 
gives  me  unspeakable  consolation.  Almost  every  day, 
especially  on  feast  days,  Indians  come  to  me  asking  for 
holy  Baptism.  On  Pentecost  Sunday  I  baptized  five  and 
on  Pentecost  Monday,  fifteen.  God  be  praised  and 
tlianked  for  all !" 


, 


\- 


(i^ 


h  i 


i; 


}{ 


Ji^ 


11; 

1:1 


!( 


1 


'JJ! 


li 


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I 


il 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

A  LETTER  FROM  SOME  INDIAN  CHIEFS  AT  ARBRE  CROCHE  TO 
BISHOP  FENWICK.  LAST  VISIT  OF  BISHOP  FENWICK 
TO  ARBRE  CROCHE  ;  HIS  UNTIMELY  DEATH  FROM  CHOL- 
ERA ;  BATJAOa's  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  DEATH. 

We  insert  here  a  letter  of  some  Indian  chiefs  and  head- 
men of  Arbre  Croche  to  Bishop  Fenwick,  of  Cincinnati, 
when  sending  him  some  of  their  children  to  learn  useful 
trades.  The  letter  is  not  dated,  but  we  think  it  was  written 
in  1832.  It  gives  an  insight  into  the  great  love  and  attach- 
ment which  Indians  have  for  their  children. 

"Our  Father !  You  desire  to  have  some  boys  of  our 
nation  for  Cincinnati  in  order  to  place  them  in  apprentice- 
ship with  some  tradesmen.  We  are  very  much  pleased 
with  your  proposal  and  we  send  you  four  of  our  children 
from  Old  and  New  Arbre  Croche,  namely,  Joseph  Boyd 
and  Michael  Shawanibinessi  (Southern  Bird)  to  learn  the 
blacksmith  and  locksmith  trade;  Michael  Fenwick  and 
Michael  Medoayandagashe  to  learn  the  carpenter  and  cabi- 
netmaker's trade.  We  also  wish  that  these  children  lee  n 
to  read  and  write  your  language. 

"Our  Father!  We  pray  you  to  get  a  good  place  for 
our  children  and  to  take  fatherly  care  of  them,  for  they 
are  also  your  children  in  Jesus  Christ. 

"We  beg  of  you  also  to  send  the  married  man  you  prom- 
ised us.  We  will  give  him  and  his  family  some  land,  so 
that  he  can  live  with  us. 

"We  recommend  ourselves  to  your  prayers  and  give 
you  our  hand. 


fl^ 


(t 


T 


-I  »• 


I'l: 

-  *  ■  . 
Im: 


;ii  ■«: 


LAST  TIBIT  OF  BISHOP  FBNWICK. 


129 


"+ Joseph  Nawimashkote,  head-chief  of  Old  Arbre 
Croche  and  father  of  Medoayandagashe. 

+Weshimaweto,  father  of  Michael  Shawanibinessi. 

+J  oseph  Kiwekwaam,  father  of  Michael  Fenwick. 

+Wabi8agime  (White  Mosquito),  father  of  Joseph 
Boyd. 

+Leon  Pakusikan,  Alexander  Missawakwat,  head- 
cliiefs  of  Arbre  Croche." 

During  the  month  of  July  F.  Baraga  had  not  much  to 
do  in  Arbre  Croche,  as  his  people  were  gone  to  Canada  to 
get  the  presents  which  the  Canadian  government  annually 
distributed  among  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest.  These 
presents  were  valuable  and  a  great  help  to  the  poor  people. 
Hence  their  missionary  had  no  objection  to  their  making 
this  trip  to  secure  them.  lie  had  intended  to  go  in  the 
meanwhile  to  Detroit  to  get  his  new  Ottawa  prayer-book 
printed ;  but^  learning  that  Bishop  Fenwick  was  to  come 
to  Arbre  Croche  to  give  Confirmation,  he  postponed  his 
intended  trip  to  Detroit  till  September.  This  gave  him, 
moreover,  time  to  prepare  his  people  for  Confirmation. 
The  good  Bishop  arrived  on  the  2d  of  August  (1832),  and 
on  the  5th  he  conferred  that  holy  Sacrament  on  one  hun- 
dred and  forty  Indians.  Baraga  had  taken  great  pains 
to  prepare  them  well,  and  so  they  received  it  with  great 
solemnity,  decorum,  and  e<lificaticn. 

Speaking  of  this  last  visit  of  saintly  Bishop  Fenwick 
to  Arbre  Croche,  F.  Baraga  says  i 

"It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  heartfelt  joy  which 
our  good  Indians  showed  when  they  saw  their  ^great 
Father'  approach  their  village.  They  all  assembled  at  the 
lal^e  shore,  forming  a  long,  double  file.  In  the  one  row 
were  the  men,  and  in  the  other  the  women  and  children. 
The  men  fired  three  salutes  with  their  guns.  The 
unfeigned  manifebtations  of  joy  on  the  part  of  these,  his 
best  children,  touched  the  pious  Bishop  very  much.  He 
gave  us  his  apostolic  benediction  and  then  had  the  kind- 


.IV 


m 


If 


,», 


t 


■■(  i- 


• : 


% 


hi 


II; 


■I  ! 


''  1 


!1!      ■ 


U- 


H'jr 


in 


'}■<  ' 


Jm 


J  ^  -iff 


li 


:  P' 


IH 


li'i! 


mi 

¥■■ 
in 

ail  I 


130 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


ness  to  shake  hands  with  each  one  of  them,  a  thing  the 
Indians  regard  as  a  great  sign  of  friendship.  We  con- 
ducted hiiu  in  procession  to  the  church,  where,  after  mak- 
ing liis  adoration  to  the  Blessed  Sacrament,  he  made  a 
touching  address  to  the  Indians,  which  deeply  penetrated 
their  hearts.  On  the  5tli  of  August,  after  Confirmation 
had  hcen  given,  the  l^ishop  convened  all  the  chiefs  and 
headmen  of  mv  mission  and  made  known  to  them  some 
civil  regulations  which  he  had  made  for  the  Ottawas.  The 
Indians  accepted  these  rules  with  great  satisfaction  and 
solemnly  promised  to  keep  them.  The  missionary  and  four 
head-chiefs  are  the  executors  of  tixese  laws." 

Little  did  Bishop  Fenwick  think,  perhaps,  that  his 
davs  were  so  soon  to  come  to  an  end,  and  that  one  of  his 
last  official  acts  would  be  giving  Confirmation  to  his  poor, 
but  gocd-hearted  and  fervent  Indian  children.  Yet  so  it 
w^as  to  be.  F.  Baraga,  in  a  letter  dated  Detroit,  October 
10th,  1832,  thus  writes  about  the  death  of  his  dear  Bishop 
to  the  Directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society  at  Vienna : 

"With  most  profound  sorrow  I  inform  your  Reverend 
Board  of  Directors  that  our  Rt.  Rev.  and  dear  Bishop, 
Edward  Fenwick,  died  of  the  cholera  on  the  26th  of  Sep- 
tember (1832),  at  noon.  He  always  lived  as  a  zealous 
missionary  in  holy  poverty,  and  he  also  died  on  a  mission- 
tour,  like  St.  Francis  Xavier,  poor  and  abandoned.  He 
was  just  on  his  way  returning  from  a  mission  and  visita- 
tion-tour, such  as  he  used  to  undertake  annuallv  to  the 
great  spiritual  benefit  of  his  diocese,  M'hen  all  of  a  sudden 
he  was  seized  with  terrible  cramps.  He  was  obliged  to  get 
out  of  the  waffon  and  entered  the  house  of  a  Catholic 
family.  The  nearest  priest  was  immediatel;  sent  for,  but 
he  lived  thirty  miles  away.  When  the  priest  arrived,  our 
dear  Bishop  Avas  already  dead  and  buried.  Thus  this  apo^^- 
tolic  man  departed  this  life  without  the  help  of  a  priest; 
for,  in  order  not  to  deprive  a  congregation  of  its  pastor,  he 
generally  traveled  alone,  without  a  ])riest  accompanying 


X 


yf. 


a=. 


'  I 


it 


■I 


t  )' 


fl    ,1  'it 


mf^f: 

M 

'>9M 

t 


M 


1  ' 

i',' 

I  1 


]■! 


LAST  VISIT  OF  BISHOP  FENWICK. 


131 


him.  However,  the  angels  and  the  Queen  of  the  angels, 
towards  whom  he  had  all  his  lifetime  cherished  a  very  fer- 
vent and  tender  devotion,  no  doubt  assisted  him  in  his 
dying  hour.  And,  although  his  mortal  remains  were 
buried  without  a  priest  being  present  to  bless  them,  his 
beautiful  soul  was  no  doubt  conducted  by  the  angels  before 
the  face  of  our  Lord,  to  whom  he  had  devoted  his  whole 
life.  'No  grand  monument  tells  posterity  that  here  rest  the 
mortal  remains  of  the  Apostle  of  Ohio,  but  he  erected  to 
himself  thousands  of  standing  monuments  in  the  hearts  of 
all  those  whom  he  brought  to  the  knowler^ge  of  God  through 
his  wonderful  zeal  and  pious  prayers.  May  he  rest  in 
peace  and  light  eternal  shine  upon  him !"  He  died  at 
Wooster,  Ohio. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

CONTINUATION  OF  F.  BAEAGA^S  LABORS  DURING  THE  YEAR 
1832.  HIS  FIRST  INDIAN  PRAYER-BOOK  PRINTED  AT 
DETROIT.  WHAT  FATHER  HyETSCHER,  C.  SS.  R.,  AND 
OTHERS  SAY  OF  HIM  AND  HIS  WORK. 


;   1 


lii-f, 


.i;i,  !.! 


After  Bishop  Fenwick's  departure  from  Arbre  Croche, 
F.  Baraga  visited  his  new  missions,  begiin  in  the  spring. 
In  one  of  them,  called  Manistique,  he  stayed  five  days, 
being  all  that  time  occupied  in  hearing  confessions  and 
giving  instructions.  He  felt  great  consolation  in  finding 
his  neophytes  steadfast  in  their  holy  religion.  He  bap- 
tized there  an  Indian  family  of  five  persons.  From 
Manistique  he  went  to  Beaver  Island,  where  many  Indians 
had  prepared  themselves  for  Baptism.  He  examined 
them  and  on  Assumption  Day  baptized  fifteen  persons. 

Shortly  afterwards  he  went  to  Detroit  to  get  his  Indian 
prayer-book  printed.  The  prayer-book  of  F.  Dejean  was 
not  in  Ottawa,  but  in  Algonquin,  which  language,  though 
it  strongly  resembles  the  Ottawa,  still  has  many  words 
unintelligible  to  the  Ottawas.  Hence  the  necessitv  of  a 
prayer-book  in  their  own  language.  This  book  is  the 
"Anamiemasinaigan"  of  Baraga,  which  contains  not  only 
the  prayers  usually  found  in  prayer-books,  but  also  a  great 
number  of  hymns  for  diiferent  festivals  of  the  year,  in 
honor  of  our  Lord,  the  Blessed  Virgin,  Holy  Eucharist, 
etc.,  which  our  Indians  delight  to  sing.  It  contains,  more- 
over, a  complete  catechism  of  the  Christian  doctrine.  It 
is  the  best  Indian  prayer-book  we  have  and  is  most  highly 
prized  by  our  Indians,  both  Ottawas,  Chippewas,  and 
Menominees.  Bishop  Fenwick  had  given  F.  Baraga  two 
hundred  and  twelve  dollars,  which  sufficed  to  pay  for  one 


LABORS  DURING  THE  YEAR  1832 


133 


thousand  copies.  F.  Baraga  felt  much  rejoiced  that  he 
could  give  this  so  necessary  and  useful  prayer-book  to  his 
dear  Indians,  many  of  whom  could  read. 

Before  continuing  our  narrative  of  Baraga's  labors  in 
the  extensive  mission  of  Arbre  Cro^^he,  we  will  give  the 
opinions  of  different  parties  as  to  the  man  and  his  labors. 

In  a  letter  of  Father  Francis  Xavier  Hatscher,  C.  SS. 
R.,  to  his  Superior,  Bev.  Simon  Sanderl,  dated  Detroit, 
the  17th  of  September,  1832,  he  writes  thus  of  F.  Baraga: 

'*Rev.  Father  Baraga  has  come  here  from  Arbre  Croche 
to  get  his  Indian  reading  and  prayer-book  printed.  He 
works  with  me  like  a  brother  and  helps  me  very  much,  but 
he  will  be  obliged  to  return  soon  to  his  dear  Ottawas, 
amongst  ivliom  he  ivorhs  miracles  of  salvation.  He  is  very 
poor  and  lives  like  a  Trappist,  hut  with  all  that  he  prizes 
himself  over-happy.  1  understand  this  well  and  desire  to 
be  made  a  partaker  in  the  hardships  and  consolations  of 
this  noble  man.  Rev.  Baraga  wishes  to  take  along  my 
companion,  Brother  Alois,  to  Arbre  Croche,  in  order  that 
the  latter  may  teach  some  of  his  Indians  the  locksmith 
and  blacksmith  trade.  This  will  be  a  great  benefit  to  the 
good  Indians,  in  order  that  they  w^ll  not  be  obliged  to 
come  to  the  city  (Detroit),  which  is  several  days'  jour- 
ney distant,  the  visiting  of  which  is  injurious  to  their 
morality." 

Speaking  of  F.  Baraga  and  his  flourishing  mission  at 
Arbre  Croche,  Rt.  Rev.  Rese,  first  Bishop  of  Detroit,  says : 
*'The  mission  of  Arbre  Croche  is  one  of  the  most  flourish- 
ing amongst  the  Indians,  since  it  numbers  over  one  thou- 
sand converts,  who  can  be  regarded  as  models  of  true 
piety." 

To  the  above  we  beg  leave  to  add  Father  Bonduel's 
account  of  the  religious,  moral  and  temporal  condition  of 
the  Arbre  Croche  Indians  under  F.  Baraga's  successor, 
Rev.  Simon  Sanderl,  C.  SS.  R.,  in  the  early  part  of  1835. 
He  says : 


1 


I 


1  i 


'  i 


I  > 


I  I 


^i 


I  t 


0<        -M 


w 

1  ■ 

T 

I      >    \  > 


IM  ■'■■ 


II' 'i 


134 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


(( 


.  .  It  is  but  a  few  years  ago  uhat  the  beneficent 
voice  of  religion  reached  the  Indians  of  Arbre  Croche. 
But  since  the  day  that  the  word  of  God  preached  by  Catho- 
lic missionaries  penetrated  their  dense  forests  and  the 
cross  of  Christ  was  planted  on  the  shores  of  their  littie 
bay,  the  progress  of  these  people  in  morals,  religion,  and 
civilization  has  been  wonderful.  ...  At  j^resent  there 
is  no  Indian  tribe  that  can  compare  wirh  'hem  in  patience, 
meekness,  nd  spiritua?  r:  dfi-c  noi  Pu8  change  is  but 
the  happy  result  of  our  hob^  icu;/.  ts.  The  interesting 
account,  which  our  lit.  Rev.  BisL'-  p  max'  '^  known  to  the 
public  in  the  Catholic  Telegraph,  of  his  Episcopal  visit  to 
Arbre  Croche,  I  foimd  entirely  verified  when  I  visited 
that  Indian  mission  for  the  first  time.  They  are  the  jewels 
of  his  diocese,  the  crown  of  his  apostolic  labors. 

"Some  days  after  my  arrival  there,  I  preached  to  a 
large  congregation  morning  and  evening.  ^N^othing  can 
compare  with  the  attention  which  they  gave  to  my  simple 
sermons.  The  pose  of  their  bodies,  the  expression  of  their 
countenances,  their  outward  propriety,  and  their  venera- 
tion for  the  word  of  God — all  gave  testimony  of  the  inward 
piety  and  religious  feelings  which  were  expressed  in  their 
outward  conduct.  The  extraordinary  and  unbroken 
silence  during  the  whole  sermon  filled  me  with  respect  for 
the  congregation  and  with  reverence  towards  Father  Siin- 
derl,  their  pastor,  who  had  led  them  so  far  on  the  narrow 
path  of  Christian  perfection.  The  devotion  of  these  good 
people  penetrated  my  soul  and  tears  filled  my  eyes  whilst 
surrendering  myself  to  the  emotions  it  awakened  in  me." 

On  page  45,  Leopoldine  Society  Report  for  the  year 
1833,  we  find  an  Indian's  comparative  estimate  of  Catholic 
and  Protestant  missionaries.  We  give  this  queer  piece  of 
Indian  philosophical  observation  in  fidl. 

"Our  forefathers  had  men  with  black-robes  as  leaders. 
They  had  neither  wives  nor  children.  They  devoted  them- 
selves entirely  to  prayer  and  to  the  service  of  the  red  men. 


!'  '1' 


LABORS  DURING  THE  YEAR  18;«. 


136 


When  these  men  ate,  thev  were  satiated,  for  thev  had  but 
one  mouth  to  fill,  and  when  one  of  them  died,  he  did  not 
iioed  anything"  more,  for  he  had  all  he  needed  in  heaven, 
'  d  when  v/e  buried  him  we  had  only  to  pray  for  his  spirit 
(•.juI),  Now  tliey  give  us  men  like  ourselves  as  chiefs  of 
p.  aver.  Tiiese  men  have  women,  and  they  love  them, 
'f  ..ley  have  children,  and  ;hev  love  them.  The  women  and 
children  havy  ^)  any  mouths  and  many  backs.  The  chil- 
dren grow  larger  every  day,  and  the  poor  man  of  prayer 
has  great  fear  because  he  loves  (wife  and  children).  He 
fears  that  these  mouths  will  not  all  be  filled  and  these 
backs  will  not  all  be  clothed.  He  fears  very  much  tr.  "■'% 
for  then  those  he  loves  will  suffer  hunger,  if  we  do  nr  ;  \v. 
port  them.  As  long  as  he  lives  he  takes  care  of  h  ^^^ii- 
and  children,  and  when  he  does  this  he  savs  to  !ic  "  d- 
skin:  ^1  do  my  duty;'  and  tl.-^  red-skin  goes  a-  ay  and 
+hinks  what  his  father  said  that  the  Black-robe  w;  :^.  man 
not  like  one  of  us  and  that  he  loved  the  red-skin  vei  v  much 
because  he  had  but  the  Great  Spirit  and  his  people  to  love. 
He  had  no  wife  and  no  child.  He  had  but  one  mouth  and 
one  back,  and  when  he  died  this  mouth  was  shut  and  this 
back  cold,  and  he  feared  not  when  the  time  came  to  die, 
and  he  looked  only  on  the  red-skin,  whom  he  loved." 
Sound  Indian  philosophy ! 


CHAPTER  XXL 

UABAOA's  labors  during  1833.  visits  little  DETROIT, 
MANISTIQUE  AND  BEAVER  T'  ^.aND.  BAPTIZES  A  GREAT 
MANY  PAGANS  DURING  .  ENTECOST  WEEK  AT  ARBRE 
CROCHE. 


111! 


ii: 


During  the  w'.iter  of  1832-1833  F.  Baraga'8  labors 
were  eonliiied  f  tincipally  to  the  Indiana  of  Arbre  Croohe 
and  two  small  v)  llages  not  far  distant.  Host  all  the  inhabi- 
tants of  these  th  ee  places  were  now  Christians,  full  of  fer- 
vent piety  and  morally  well-behaved. 

During  that  .  ame  winter  the  zealous  missionary  was 
under  the  necessit>  of  making  a  journey  of  thirty  or  forty 
miles  on  snow-shoe^  to  Mackinac  and  back.  The  entire 
distance  both  ways,  taiv'ng  into  consideration  the  turnings 
and  windings  of  the  roaa  or  trail,  would  probably  be  not 
much  less  than  ^ne  hundred  Liiles.  The  Indian  snow-shoe 
is  made  of  a  wooden  frame-work  about  forty-eight  to  sixty 
inches  long  and  twelve  inches  broad  or  more,  interlaced 
with  buckskin  strings.  They  are  very  useful  for  traveling 
in  winter,  when  the  snow  is  d(?ep  and  there  are  no  beaten 
roads  or  trails.  They  are,  however,  pretty  heavy,  and  to 
one  not  accustomed  to  walk  with  them  it  is  a  very  difficult 
and  painful  task  to  travel  a  considerable  distance.  F. 
Baraga  not  being  as  yet  accustomed  to  walk  with  snow- 
shoes,  found  it  very  hard  to  go  with  them  all  the  way  to 
Mackinac.  The  journey  took  him  two  days.  Often  he 
sank  down  in  the  snow  quite  exhausted.  The  return  trip 
was  still  more  painful.  Many  a  time  he  thought  he  would 
be  unable  to  go  further.  His  kind  Indian  guides  had  great 
pity  for  their  poor  Father  and  would  wait  for  him  when- 


\iy 


LABORS  DURINO  1838. 


137 


ever  he  would  bo  obliged  to  stop  and  rest.    Many  such  jour- 
neys did  he  make  later  on,  as  we  shall  see  hereafter. 

His  first  mission-trip  in  the  spring  of  lHl^,]  was  to  an 
island  in  l.ake  Michigan,  called  Little  Detroit.  The 
inhabitants  had  never  seen  the  face  of  a  priest,  but  they 
had  heard  from  some  Christian  Indians  who  had  visited 
their  island  about  the  Black-robe  and  his  religion,  and 
expressed  a  desire  to  see  and  hear  him. 

As  soon  as  F.  Baraga  heard  of  it  he  embarked  on  the 
journey.  The  wind  was  unfavorable  and  the  weather  very 
disagreeable.  Besides,  the  boat  was  unsafe  and  they 
were  in  constant  danger  of  being  engulfed  by  the  waves. 
Bariiga,  however,  was  calm  and  fearless.  lie  knew  that 
the  good  Shepherd  was  leading  him  to  some  of  His  sheep, 
whom  he  was  to  bring  to  the  fold.  Finally,  after  a  thou- 
sand miseries  and  dangers,  he  landed  at  the  island.  The 
poor  Indians  were  very  much  pleased  to  see  a  priest  at 
their  village.  He  remained  with  them  eight  days  and 
instructed  them  thoroughly,  as  he  noticed  their  good  dis- 
position towards  Christianity.  The  14th  of  May  was  a 
happy  day  for  both  Indians  and  priest.  On  that  day 
twentv-two  of  them  were  made  children  of  God  bv  the  holy 
Sacrament  of  Baptism. 

The  others  were  not  opposed  to  religion.  They  gave 
him  hopes  that  they,  too,  would  become  Christians  upon 
his  next  visit  to  their  island.  Pie  promised  to  see  them 
again  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  and  they  agreed  to  build 
in  the  meanwhile  a  log  chapel  at  a  place  designated  by  him. 

On  the  home  journey  the  party  were  in  great  want  of 
provisions.  It  is  true  the  good  people  of  Little  Detroit 
had  given  them  some  potatoes  and  fish;  these  were 
soon  consumed  and  thev  were  without  anvthing  to 
eat.  But  divine  Providence  did  not  forget  them.  Sailing 
by  a  rocky  islet,  they  saw  a  great  number  of  sea-birds, 
gulls,  fly  up.  They  concluded  that  they  must  have  their 
nests  on  the  islet.     Thev  therefore  landed  and  found  one 


If 

I 


'I', 


W 


ill! 


I 


f  i 


pi 


138 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


11!  r. 


n  :i^' 


'tI: 


)■    I    ' 


i-\vi 


hundred  and  tliirty  eggs  as  large  aa  goose  eggs  and  of  an 
excellent  taste.  Having  made  a  hearty  meal  of  these  eggs 
■with  many  thanks  to  (icxl,  they  continued  their  voyage. 

On  til  is  journey  he  also  visited  Manistique,  where,  to 
his  great  joy,  F.  Haraga  found  all  his  converts  true  to  their 
holy  faith.  They  had  made  great  progress  in  their  knowl- 
edge of  religion,  thanks  to  the  untiring  zeal  of  a  well- 
instructed  ( 'hristian  from  Arhre  Cro<'he,  who  had  wintered 
with  them.  They  were  likewise  busy  building  a  new  and 
bestter  church  than  the  one  hastily  erected  the  previous 
year,  and  were  in  hopes  of  finishing  it  daring  that  sum- 
mer. As  all  had  been  baptized  at  his  visit  except  one  old 
headstrung  pagan,  F.  I^aragu  had  only  two  children  to 
baptize. 

lie  says  he  cannot  sufficiently  praise  these  good 
Indians,  especially  on  acccmnt  of  their  extraordinary  love 
of -prayer.  They  faithfully  said  long  prayers  every  morn- 
ing and  evening.  They  likewise  said  the  Holy  Rosary 
everv  dav  very  devoutlv ;  some  of  them  did  so  even  twice 

■  t'  9.'  t  - 

or  ihroi}  times.  Whatever  time  they  could  spare  from 
their  work  they  devoted  to  reading  their  Indian  prayer- 
books,  praying,  singing  spiritual  hymns,  and  learning  the 
catechism.  ]\Io8t  of  them  knew  how  to  read  ;  the  rest  were 
trving  hard  to  learn. 

When  reading  this  account,  penned  by  F.  Ba-aga  him- 
self, who  does  not  think  of  the  words  of  Jesns:  '1  con- 
fess to  Thee,  Father  of  heaven  and  earth,  that  Thou  hast 
concealed  these  things  from  the  wise  and  prudent  and 
revealed  them  to  the  little  ones."  We  see  a  number  of 
poor,  ignorant  Indians  embrace  the  religion  of  One  who 
w^as  poor  and  despised  like  themselves,  whereas  millions 
of  whites,  puffed  up  with  pride  and  learning,  are  left  in 
heresy  and  infidelity  to  perish  in  their  sins. 

From  Manistique  F.  Baraga  sailed  to  Beaver  Island, 
■where  the  number  of  Christians  was  greater  than  either 
in  Little  Detroit  or  Manistique;  still  the  majority  of  the 


[-AHORR  DURINCl  1K«. 


139 


iiiliiil)ita!its  woro  yet  j)HgHns  aiid  hitter  onoiiiios  of  the 
Cliristiaii  r('ligi<ni.  Th(\v  (l('sj)is(Ml  nnd  iiMK'kcd  their 
Christian  (Mumtrviiieii  ami  tried  in  everv  wav  to  avert 
tlieni  from  tiie  faith.  They  likewise  prevented  them  from 
])nildinfj;  a  clmrch,  as  the  latter  had  intended,  and  threat- 
ened to  hnrn  it  down  should  they  ereet  o!ie.  To  pi  in  their 
good  will  F.  Baraj;a  h<MiiLj;lit  them  presents — eloth,  little 
scissors,  needles,  thread,  ete.,  and  mueh  tobaeeo,  of  which 
they  are  j)assionately  fond.  The  pafjjans  then  ])romised 
to  no  lonp'r  molest  the  (Christians,  but  W(mld  not  allow  a 
church  to  be  built  on  their  island.  Baraga  visited  them 
from  time  to  time  and  continued  jjjiving  them  all  sorts  of 
little  presents.  At  the  same  time  he  c(>mplained  to  them 
that,  notwithstandini!:  all  his  kindness  to  them,  they  were 
so  unfriendly  to  him  and  his  children  and  would  not  allow 
a  house  of  prayer  to  be  erected  on  their  island  to  th  Great 
Spirit.  Finally  they  relented  a  little.  Meeting,  before 
his  tent,  their  sj)okesman  said  that  they  wore  no  longer 
opposed  to  the  building  of  a  church,  but  it  should  not  be 
put  Tip  in  their  village,  but  far  away  in  the  woods.  They 
then  showed  him  the  spot  Avhere  he  might  build  his  church. 
F.  Baraga  thanked  God  for  this  concession  and  felt  glad 
that  they  (!ould  now  worship  God  far  away  from  those 
stubborn,  hard-hearted  pagans.  He  remained  a  few  days 
on  the  island  and  ba])tized  three  pagans. 

On  the  24th  of  ^lay  he  returned  to  Arbre  Croclie^ 
where  great  labors,  but  also  great  consolations,  were  in 
store  for  him.  He  had  a  very  great  number  of  confessions 
to  hear  for  Pentecor  Sundav.  That  dav,  as  he  savs,  w^as 
the  hap])iest  of  his  life,  for  he  then  baptized  in  his 
church  at  Arbre  Crocb*^  thirty-eight  pagatis,  all  of  them 
adults  except  six  small  children.  The  heart  of  the  saintly 
missionary  overflowed  with  joy  and  gratitude  to  God,  who 
had  deigned  to  shower  down  such  abundant  blessings  on 
his  labors.  The  next  day  he  baptized  six  adults ;  on  the 
1st  of  June  three,  and  on  the  3d  tAvo  more.     Besides, 


U' 


.il 


I'''. 


lili 


I' 


Mi: 


m 


¥ 


> 


II 


i 


i 


"■^i'.j4i.a^.wJMi 


mmmm 


fK%  VVvt::. 


140 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


1  -r' 


!    1 


■;l  ^'i 


twelve  more  were  to  be  baptized  that  week ;  in  all  sixty-one 
persons,  almost  all  adults. 

"Thanks  be  to  God  forever  for  all  this,"  he  exclaims ; 
^'I  feel  unspeakably  happy  that  the  most  holy  Providence 
has  placed  me  in  the  happy  situation  of  an  Indian  mis- 
sionary and  I  thank  Him  for  it  from  the  bottom  of  my 
heart.  Would  to  God  that  I  could  fulfill  truly,  worthily 
and  zealouslv  the  duties  of  the  holv  ministry  which  He  has 
•entrus+cd  to  me !  God  grant  that  I  may  gain  very  many 
souls  and  bring  back  many  lost  sheep  to  the  fold  !  I  thank 
the  Reverend  Directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society  and  my 
former  Rt.  Rev.  Bishoo,  who  have  so  kindly  received  my 
petition  for  permission  to  go  to  the  (Indian)  mission  and 
who  have  aided  its  execution.  I  also  thank  all  benefactors 
of  the  I^eopoldine  Society  for  all  the  gifts  in  money  and 
other  pseful  articles  received  from  them.  All  th?se 
presents  are  very  useful  to  my  churches  and  my  neophytes. 
Many  of  them,  such  as  church  ornaments,  holy  pictures, 
and  rosaries  cannot  be  obtained  here  even  for  money.  The 
Indian  converts  are  so  much  attached  to  and  entertain 
such  a  veneration  for  these  objects  of  devotion  that  they 
all  ask  for  them,  and  if  anyone  loses  his  rosary  or  little 
cross,  he  comes  immediately  to  the  missionary  to  get 
another ;  hence  I  need  an  enormous  number  of  them." 

On  the  r»th  of  June  F.  Baraga  baptized  fifteen  pagans, 
mostly  adults,  at  Old  Arbre  Croche,  a  village  about 
tweiitv-one  miles  distant  from  Xew  Arbre  Croche,  after- 
wards  called  Little  Traverse,  now  Harbor  Springs.  It  was 
at  Xew  Arbre  Croche  where  the  parish  chu  'ch  of  the 
w^hole  mission  was  built.  Many  a  time  befrre  had  F. 
Barnga  visited  Old  Arbre  Croche*  and  baptized  there,  but 
never  so  manv  at  a  time. 


*It  was  at  Old  Arbre  Croche.  as  we  learn  from  the  author  of  the 
^'History  of  the  Ottawas  and  Chippewas  in  Michigan,"  that  Father 
Vincent  Badin  had  Mass  in  a  small,  rude  chapel  erected  by  the 
Indians  in  1825.  It  was  also  there  that  Father  du  Jaunay  laboredamong 
the  Ottawas  in  the  middle  of  the  last  century. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


F.    BARAGA  S    FIKST    VISIT    TO    GRAND    RIVER ;    HE    BAPTIZES 

RESUME  OF  HIS 
HE    LEAVES    ARBRE    CROCHE    AND    IS    SUC" 


many;  returns  to  arbre  croche. 


MISSIONS. 

CEEDED  there  by  REV.   F.   SANDERL,  C.   SS.  R, 


kit 

jas 
he 
F. 
lut 


Ihe 
\ev 
bhe 


When  Bishop  Fenwick  installed  F.  Baraga  as  pastor 
of  Arbre  Croche  in  1831,  he  told  him  to  do  his  best  to  seek 
out  and  convert  all  the  Ottawas  to  the  true  faith.  Having 
learned  that  there  were  many  of  them  at  Grand  Kiver,  he 
most  earnestly  urged  F.  Baraga  to  visit  and  try  to  convert 
thorn.  However,  during  the  first  two  years  the  zealous 
missionary  was  too  much  occupied  with  the  conversion  of 
the  Indians  in  and  near  Arbre  Croche  to  think  of  going 
to  Grand  River.  Xow  the  time  of  visitation,  the  time  of 
grace  was  come  for  these  poor  Indians  who  had  been  living 
so  long  ''in  the  region  and  shadow  of  death." 

During  the  winter  of  1832-1833  Baraga  founded  a 
forerunner,  a  John  the  Baptist,  in  the  person  of  a  pious 
and  well-instructed  Indian  of  Arbre  Crochre,  who  intended 
to  winter  at  G.and  River.  The  good  Father  commis- 
sioned this  pious  man  to  visit  from  time  to  time  the 
various  scattered  villages  of  his  countrymen  at  the  above- 
named  river,  to  speak  to  them  about  the  Christian  religion 
and  tell  them  about  the  Black-robe,  who  was  living  with 
their  countrymen  at  Arbre  Croche  and  assure  them  that  he 
would  visit  them  without  fail  the  next  summer.  This  new 
John  the  Baptist,  as  F.  Baraga  styles  him,  fulfilled  his 
commission  most  faithfully  and  effectually  prepared  the 
wav  for  the  zealous  missionarv.  So  well  did  our  Indian 
labor  that  many  of  his  country  men  at  Grand  River  prom- 
ised to  embrace  the  religion  of  which  he  spoke  so  highly, 


» 


Wf«MH»«jii*Aii»"'w'*K'.t*i(r*y*? 


142 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


•I ' 


I 


I     ' 


ass  ^oon  as  they  would  have  the  happiness  of  seeing  and 
hearing  the  anibassador  of  the  Great  Spirit. 

^  With  great  longing  did  F.  Baraga  await  the  return 
of  his  Indian  precursor.  At  length  he  arrived.  Grasp- 
ing the  hand  of  his  dear  Father  he  said,  smiling:  "Happy 
news,  my  Father,  happy  news !"  Then  he  told  him  all 
he  had  done  in  the  cause  of  religion  and  how  bright  the 
prospects  were  at  Grand  River,  if  there  were  but  a  mis- 
sionary there,  for  whom  many  of  the  people  longed  most 
eagerly.  The  nearest  mission  to  it  was  that  of  St.  Joseph 
amongst  the  Po.tawatamies,  which  was  about  160  miles 
distant.  Fathers  Francis  Vincent  Badin  and  Deseilles 
labored  there  at  the  time. 

F.  Baraga  immediately  made  preparations  for  the  long 
iournev  to  Grand  Kiver,  Avhicli  was  some  200  miles  from 
Arbre  Croche  and  where  there  were  about  900  Indians, 
all  pagans,  excepting  a  few  Protestants.  He  left  Arbre 
Croche  on  the  7th  of  June  (1833)  and  after  incredible 
hardships  and  fatigue,  arrived  at  Grand  River  on  the  15th 
of  the  month.  He  was  the  first  Catholic  priest  that  set  his 
foot  on  Grand  River  soil,  the  first  to  offer  up  there  the 
Holy  Sacrifice  of  the  Mass. 

At  that  time  the  above-named  river  formed  the  bound- 
ary between  the  imceded  Ottawa  country  and  that  belong- 
ing to  Michigan.  The  country  north  of  said  river  belong- 
ed as  vet  to  the  Ottawas,  the  country  south  of  it  belonged 
to  Michigan.  The  largest  Indian  village  was  located  a 
day's  journey  up  the  river  and  it  was  there  F.  Baraga 
established  the  seat  of  his  new  mission.  He  described 
the  surrounding;  countrv  as  wonderfullv  beautiful. 
Op  ^osite  the  village,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  a  rich 
Frei.ch-Canadian  family  had  settled.  This  family  was 
very  numerous,  as  is  frequently  the  case  with  Catiadian 
French,  who  in  this  respect  are  very  different  from  their 
"cousins"  across  the  broad  Atlantic.  They  were  also  good, 
practical    Catholics    and    w^ere   exceedingly    giad    at    the 


■  yf 


:'Hi 


)ed 

W. 

ich 

[vas 

lian 

leir 

pd, 

the 


LEAVES   AKBRE    CROCHE. 


143 


arrival  of  the  pious  piissionary  in  that  country,  for  they 
had- not  seen  a  priest  for  a  long  time.  F.  Baraga  had  to 
stop  with  this  good  family,  the  members  of  which  over- 
whelmed him  with  kind  attention:^.  They  converted  their 
new  house,  but  lately  erected,  into  a  temporary  church,  in 
which  the  missionary  daily  said  holy  Mass  with  great 
fervor  and  grateful  emotion.  Here,  likewise,  did  he 
preach  mornings  and  evenings  to  great  numbers  of 
Indians,  who  came  over  from  the  otiier  side  of  the  river 
to  hear  the  Black-robe,  the  first  one  many  of  them  had  ever 
seen,  preach  in  their  dear  native  tongue  the  truths  of 
Christianit}'.  He  remained  there  twenty-three  days, 
busily  employed  in  the  holy  work  of  the  mission.  On  the 
day  before  he  left  he  baptized  with  all  possible  solemnity 
forty-si;s:  pagans. 

"I  baptized,"  he  writes,  "on  this  day  forty-six  2)agans 
at  one  time,  the  first  fruits  of  this  new  flourishing  mission, 
in  which,  as  I  hope,  with  God's  saving  grace,  many  souls 
will  be  rescued  from  perdition  and  brought  to  eternal  sal- 
vation. O  what  an  unspeakable  consoling  prospect 
for  me,  who  have  come  only  for  this  into  the  wild  country 
to  seek  for  lost  sheep  and  to  rescue  them,  with  God's  help, 
from  eternal  ruin !" 

In  addition  to  the  forty-six  Indians  baptized  at  the 
principal  village  of  Grand  River,  he  baptized  many  others 
in  other  smaller  hamlets.  In  one  of  these  he  bap- 
tized six,  in  another  twenty-one,  and  in  a  third  thirteen; 
in  all,  eighty-six.  Truly,  God  was  with  this  saintly  mis- 
sionarv. 

F.  Baraga's  wonderful  success  at  Grand  River  deter- 
mined Bishop  Rese,  the  first  Bishop  of  Detroit,  Mich.,  to 
establish  there  a  permanent  mission  or  congregation,  con- 
sisting partly  of  Indian  converts  and  partly  of  French- 
Canadians,  many  of  whom  lived  there  and  needetl  a  priest 
very  much. 

A  minister  had  preceded  Baraga  in  that  place ;  but, 
although  he  had  been  there  nine  years  and  had  had  abund- 


■liil..  I 


^';! 


Mji 


•I'M 


.1  !i! 


!!! 


:'.i!: 
'^::i|! 


V 


It  ^ 


giii 


'I  if 


H' 


:1  n        !| 


I; 


144 


BT.  REV.  FREDERIC  BABAGA. 


)  I 


■i!ll;|l 


!'; 


u 


i;  i: 


ant  pecuniary  assistance,  he  had  converted  in  all  that 
length  of  time  but  ten  Indians.  The  same  is  also  notice- 
able elsewhere. 

To  have  the  necessary  means  for  building  a  cheap 
church  and  parsonage,  F.  Baraga  wrote  for  help  to  the 
Leopoldine  Society,  which  was  granted,  as  we  shall  see 
hereafter. 

It  was  intended  at  that  time — July  26th,  1833 — to  get 
two  Itedemptor'st  Fathers  to  make  an  establishment  of 
their  congregation  in  Arbre  Croche,  in  which  case  Father 
Baraga  was  to  remove  to  Grand  River;  and  certainly 
religious  orders  are  best  adapted  for  missionary  work. 
The  Superiors  can  select  thu  men  best  suited  for  the  work. 
Should  one  become  sick  or  be  removed,  his  place  can  be 
supplied  by  some  other  member  of  the  community.  More- 
over, they  have  more  means  at  their  disposal  than  indi- 
vidual priests.  If  the  latter  becomes  sick  or  otherwise 
incapacitated,  his  Indian  mission  may  be  left  without  a 
priest  for  years,  perhaps  even  entirely  abandoned.  Wit- 
ness the  poor  Winnebagoes  of  Wisconsin,  many  of  whom 
were  formerly  baptized  by  Father  Van  dv^n  Broeck  and 
others,  and  who  are  now  left  in  their  paganism. 

After  his  return  to  Arbre  Croche,  F.  Baraga  received 
from  the  Leopoldine  Society  a  box  full  of  religious  articles 
and  1,100  florins,  a  present  of  some  kind  benefactors  of 
the  diocese  of  Laibach,  Austria.  These  things  and  this 
monev  were  to  be  used  for  the  new  mission  of  Grand 
River.  With  a  heart  overflowing  with  gratitude,  he  prom- 
ised not  only  to  remember  his  benefactors  at  every  holy 
Mass,  but  also  to  offer  up  the  Holy  Sacrifice  for  them  from 
time  to  time. 

With  tl'is  end  his  labors  in  Arbre  Croche.  Within  two 
years  anl  ■-''v  7^ionths  he  had  baptized  four  hundred  and 
sixty-one  Indiij  ,  b(.-"des  eighty-six  at  Grand  River;  in 
all,  five  hundred  j^^d  forty-seven. 

After  ]>-h  'C"ur  1  fi  >iii  Grand  Mver,  he  made  a  last  and 
short  visit     •  ,il-  -li rlVjont  missions  before  leaving  for  good. 


LEAVES   ARBRE   CROCHE. 


145 


Towards  tbe  end  of  July  be  visited  an  Indian  village  not 
far  from  Arbro  Croelie.  Tbe  inhabitants  were  all  now 
Cbristians.  They  bad  bnilt  a  neat  little  cbnrch,  which 
F.  Baraga  blessed  on  tbe  iirst  of  August,  dedicating  it  to 
St.  Ignatius  of  Loyola.  Then  be  visited  Manistique, 
where  be  found  everything  in  the  best  of  order,  the  Indians 
all  fervent  in  prayer  and  of  good  morals.  Shortly  before, 
a  young  Indian  woman  bad  come  to  said  village  with  the 
resolution  to  leave  her  pagan  parents  and  her  home  to  live 
in  Manistique  for  tbe  rest  of  her  days  and  become  a  Chris- 
tian. From  there  Baraga  went  to  Little  Detroit,  where 
the  Indians  bad  built  a  chapel  of  birch  bark,  which  he 
blessed  in  honor  of  St.  Vincent  do  Paul,  lie  baptized 
there  on  the  12th  of  August  three  Indian  women.  Before 
leaving  he  gave  to  the  islanders  a  letter  to  the  pri&st  at 
Green  Bay,  asking  him  to  take  charge  hereafter  of  this 
small  island,  as  it  was  nearer  to  Green  Bay  than  to  Arbre 
Croche.  He  also  landed  at  Beaver  Island,  but  found  most 
of  tbe  Indians  gone  to  Canada  to  get  their  usual  gifts  from 
the  Canadian  government.  Tbe  church  could  not  be 
finished  on  account  of  the  hatred  of  the  pagans  against 
Christianity.  F.  Baraga  advised  the  Christian  Indians 
to  leave  the  island  and  settle  at  Arbre  Croche.  Finally 
he  returned  to  the  last-named  place,  where  he  found  his 
successor.  Rev.  F.  Siinderl,  Superior  of  the  lledemptorists 
in  tbe  United  States,  with  three  lay  brothers  of  the  same 
congregation. 

F.  Baraga  gives  the  following  list  of  his  missions : 

1.  ISTew  Arbre  Croche,  the  church  of  Avhich  was  dedi- 
cated by  Father  Dejean  to  St.  Peter. 

2.  Old  Arbre  Croche. 

3.  ^fission  of  St.  Mary,  with  a  church  dedicated  by 
F.  Dejean. 

4.  Mission  of  St.  Paul,  also  a  church  dedicated  by 
tbe  above  Father. 

5.  Mission  of  St.  Ignatius,  founded  by  F.  Barag .,        i 


m 


r! 


i  : 


ii]!.. 


m 

lii: 
nil- 


I 


m 

III 

m 


n 


V'.  1 


m 


mi 


?f 


'1: 


146 


BT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


m.  ■■■;■ 
ft':;' 

1' 


1'^. 


-1,:  .; 


■■■■■,■■  \ 


G.     7.a  Grande  Traverse,  with  nineteen  Christians. 

7.  Beaver  IsLand,  with  fifty-five  Christians. 

8.  Manistique,  with  thirtj-three  Christians. 

9.  Little  Detroit,  with  twenty-six  Christians. 
Speaking  of  the  happy  conditions  of  his  people  at 

Arbrc  Croche  in  those  primitive  days,  A.  J.  Blackbird 
(Mackadebenessy),  son  of  Mackadebenessy,  says  in  his 
work,  entitled,  "History  of  the  Ottawa  and  Chippewa 
Indians  of  Michigan,"  p.  40-50 : 

"The  Indians  were  very  strict  in  their  religion  at  this 
time.  They  did  not  allow  any  drunkenness  in  their  vil- 
lage, nor  allow  anyone  to  bring  intoxicating  liquors  within 
the  Harbor  (formerly  Xew  Arbre  Croche).  If  any  per- 
son, white  or  Indian,  brought  any  liquor  into  the  Harbor, 
by  the  barrel  or  in  small  quantities,  and  it  came  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  old  chief,  AA'pawkosigan,  who  was  the 
war-chief,  but  was  acting  as  principal  chief  at  Little 
Traverse,  he  would  call  out  his  men  to  go  and  search  for 
the  liquor,  and  if  foi:nd  he  ould  order  his  men  to  spill 
the  whisky  on  the  ground  by  knocking  in  the  head  of  the 
barrel  with  an  axe,  telling  them  not  to  bring  any  more 
whisky  into  the  Harbor,  or  wherever  the  Ottawas  were, 
along  the  coast  of  Arbre  Croche.  This  was  the  end  of  it, 
there  being  no  law-suit  for  the  whisky. 

"They  used  to  observe  many  holidays,  particularly 
Christmas,  Xew  Year,  and  Corpus  Christi.  At  New 
Year's  eve  every  one  of  the  Indians  used  to  go  around 
visiting  the  principal  men  of  the  tribe,  shooting  their  guns 
close  to  their  doors,  after  screaming  three  times,  "Happy 
New  Year !"  then  bang,  bang,  altogether,  blowing  their  tin 
horns,  beating  their  drums,  etc.  Early  on  New  Year's 
morning  they  would  go  around  among  their  neighbors 
expressly  to  shake  hands  one  with  another,  with  the  word 
of  salutation,  "Bozhoo,"  children  and  all.  This  practice 
was  kept  up  for  a  long  time,  or  until  the  white  people  came 
and  intermingled  with  the  tribes. 


LEAVES  ABBRE  CROOHE. 


147 


"I  thought  my  people  were  very  happy  in  those  days, 
when  they  were  all  by  themselves  and  possessed  a  v/ide- 
spread  of  land,  and  no  one  to  quarrel  with  them  as  to 
where  they  should  make  their  gardens,  or  take  timber,  or 
make  sugar.  Fish  of  all  kinds  were  so  plentiful  in  the  har- 
bor that  a  hook  anywhere  in  the  bay,  and  at  any  time  of 
the  year,  would  catch  Mackinaw  trout,  and  if  a  net  were  set 
in  the  harbor  in  shallow  water,  in  the  moniing  it  would  be 
loaded  with  fish  of  all  kinds.  Truly  it  was  a  beautiful  loca- 
tion for  the  mission.  Every  big  council  of  the  Indians  was 
convened  in  the  village  of  Little  Traverse. 

"I  will  mention  one  or  two  more  things  which  it  might 
be  interesting  to  my  readers  to  know.     Up  to  1835,  and 
some  time  afterwards,  there  was  a  very  large  double  cedar 
tree,  which  appeared  to  have  been  stuck  together  while 
growing,  but  which  in  reality  were  two  separate  trees  of 
the  same  size  and  height,  growing  close  together,  standing 
very  near  the  edge  of  the  water,   and  leaning  ^lUward 
almost    like    a    staircase    projecting    far    into    ih'^    bay. 
Under  the  roots  of  these  trees  issued  a  perpetual  spring 
of  water,  which  is  now  called  McCarlow's  Spring,  near 
the  present  depot.    In  the  fall  of  1835  I  was  clear  at  the 
top  of  those  trees,  with  my  little  playmates,  watching  our 
people  as  they  were  about  going  off  in  a  long  bark  canoe, 
and  \v'e  understood  they  were  going  to  Washington  to  see 
the  Great  Father,  the  President  of  the  United  States,  to 
tell  him  to  have  mercy  on  the  Ottawa   and  Chippewa 
Indians  in  Michigan,  not  to  take  all  the  land  away  from 
them.     I  saw  some  of  our  old  Indian  women  weeping  as 
they  watched  our  principal  men  going  off  in  the  canoe^ 
*    *    *    After  they  all  got  in  the  canoe,  just  as  they  were 
going  to  start,  they  all  took  off  their  hats,  crossed  them- 
selves and  repeated  the  Lord's  prayer.    At  the  end  of  the 
prayer  they  crossed  themselves  again,  and  then  away  they 
went  towards  Harbor  Point.    We  watched  tho^  until  they 
disappeared  in  rounding  the  point. 


J) 


:i  :l 


'll'  a 


i! 


t 


ClIAriER  XXIII. 


LABOK8  AND  IIARDSIIII'S  OF  F.  BAKAGA  AT  GRAND  EIVER. 


"■I  V 
ft  .' 
I  .,■ 


!''        ■! 


I-       . : 


i        ! 
1        i 


Father  Baraga  left  Arbre  Croche  on  or  about  the  8th 
of  September,  1833.  After  a  long  and  painful  journey, 
he  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  Grand  River  on  the  21  .t  of  the 
month,  and  here  he  rested  a  day.  Finallyj  on  the  23d,  lie 
reached  his  new  mission,  St.  Mary,  on  Grand  River. 

The  first  thing  he  did  was  to  convoke  the  Indians  to 
a  council.  When  all  were  assembled,  be  informed  them 
that  he  had  come,  not  to  pay  them  a  mere  passing  7isit,  but 
to  remain  with  them  for  good,  in  order  to  instruct  them 
. '^  :  heir  children  in  the  holy  faith  and  in  all  that  is  good 
and  usefr' 

The  Catholics  among  them  were  exceedingly  well 
pleased  at  this  joyful  news.  The  pagans  were  quite 
unconcerned.  The  few  Protestants,  however,  were  bitterly 
opposed  to  the  project  :>f  a  Catholic  mission  in  the  village. 
This  was  due  to  their  ?ninister,  who  excited  them  against 
the  Catholic  missionarv. 

After  some  talking  had  been  done  for  and  against  the 
intended  mission,  F.  Baraga  harangued  the  assembled  mul- 
titude, showing  them  the  many  advantages  of  the  mission 
for  all  parties.  The  spokesman  of  the  dissenting  Indians 
did  not  know  what  to  answer.  Finally  he  declared  that  he 
was  altogether  opposed  to  the  founding  of  a  Catholic  mis- 
sion at  the  village.  He  was,  however,  unable  to  assign  any 
valid  reason  for  his  opposition.  This  displeased  his  coun- 
trymen, for  they  saw  that  it  was  nothing  but  bigotry  that 
actuated  him.  Finally  he  proposed  to  F.  Baraga  to  estab- 
lish his  mission  further  up  the  river,  where,  he  said,  there 
were  other  Indian  villages.     Thereupon  F.  Baraga  told 


LABORS  AT  GRAND  Rr'ER. 


149 


t 


him  plainly  that  he  had  no  right  whatever  to  prevent  the 
establishment  of  a  Catholic  mission  in  their  village,  as 
there  were  already  there  -  great  many  Catholics,  and  that 
the  latter  had  as  good  a  right  to  have  their  priest  build  a 
church,  school,  and  house  in  the  village  as  his  co-religion- 
ists had  to  allow  their  preacher  to  do  the  same.  This 
silenced  his  opponent  and  tlie  debate  endc<l.  Baraga  then 
went  to  the  place  he  had  selected  for  the  church  and  desig- 
nated the  amount  of  ground  to  belong  to  the  mission. 

As  it  would  take  some  time  before  the  new  church 
could  be  built,  he  fixed  up  a  log  house  belonging  to  an 
Indian  and  said  Mass  in  it  every  day.  lie  also  kept  school 
in  the  same  building,  and  on  the  very  first  day  he  had 
twenty-five  scholars,  boys  and  g'^'ls,  besides  four  white  chil- 
dren, who,  with  their  parents,  were  not  baptized. 

Although  there  were  some  settlers  on  the  south  side  of 
the  river,  and  among  them  a  few  Catholics,  still,  as  F. 
Baraga  was  first  and  foremost  Indian  missioner,  he  con- 
cluded to  build  his  church  on  the  north  side  amongst  the 
Indians,  in  order  to  more  readily  gain  their  good  will  and 
thus  labor  with  greater  effect  at  their  conversion.  Such 
was  also  the  wish  of  Bishop  Rese. 

To  procure  carpenters  for  his  intended  church,  school, 
and  parsonage,  he  was  obliged  to  go  all  the  way  to  Detroit, 
a  distance  of  two  hundred  miles,  on  horseback.  The  road 
was  bad  and  muddy,  so  that  it  took  him  seven  days 
to  get  there,  during  which  journey  he  suffered  much,  as 
he  was  not  used  to  riding.  He  succeeded  in  hiring  two 
men  and  returned  with  them  to  Grand  River.  The  return 
journey  was  a  great  deal  harder  than  the  one  going  to 
Detroit.  There  was  but  the  one  horse  for  the  three  men, 
on  which  each  one  rode  by  turns,  whilst  the  other  two 
walked.  At  times  they  would  smk  knee-deep  into  the  mud. 
For  the  last  two  days  not  a  single  house  was  to  be  seen.  At 
the  last  house  they  bought  as  much  bread  as  they  could 


!'       ! 


n 


fiWi: 


150 


RT.  REV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


',',  .-, : 


ft 


i. 


f ;:: 


■■■;  I  ■■ 


I  '! 


I',*: 


i^^ 


>':|'    ■', Ci 


get,  but  it  was  not  enough,  and  so  the  last  day  they  had 
nothing  at  all  to  eat. 

Work  was  begun  on  the  14th  of  October,  but  as  there 
were  only  two  men,  the  work  progressed  slowly.  He 
finally  secured  another  man  to  help,  b^'t  complains  of  the 
high  wages  and  dear  materials.  Jlit  '  celling  for  some 
time  was  wretched.  He  says  it  resembled  more  an  open 
milk-houso  than  a  human  habitation. 

By  December  1st  ho  had  one  hundred  converts,  and 
many  others  promised  to  become  Christians.  The  number 
of  his  scholars  had  increased  to  thirty-eight.  However, 
he  felt  continually  uneasv  as  to  the  fate  of  this  new  mis- 
sion,  partly  on  account  of  the  great  outlays  connected  with 
it,  p.itl}  ^  also,  on  account  of  the  great  prevalence  of  dnmk- 
enness  amongst  the  Indians. 

One  old  man,  the  oldest  head-chief  of  the  village,  was 
formerly  a  terrible  drunkard.  He  had  been  the  greatest 
brave  of  his  band  and  many  a  scalp  had  he  taken  in  his 
time.  AVhen  intoxicated  he  would  imagine  himself  on  the 
warpath,  and  in  his  drunken  frenzy  he  was  a  terror  to  his 
wife  and  children,  who  were  often  in  danger  of  their  lives. 
He  was  converted  and  baptized  and  gave  up  liquor  alto- 
gether. N^ot  another  drop  passed  over  his  lips.  The  pagan 
wolf  became  a  meek  Christian  lamb.  He  used  to  come  to 
church  covered  with  a  poor  blanket,  and,  taking  his  rosary, 
which  he  always  wore  around  his  neck,  in  his  hands,  would 
kneel  down  in  a  corner  of  the  church  and  pray  most 
devoutly.  He  spent  his  time  in  working  and  praying  and 
exhorting  his  pagan  countrymen  to  embrace  the  Christian 
religion. 

We  see  here  the  soul-renovating  and  civilizing  effects 
of  religion.  Futile  are  all  government  attempts  to  civilize 
the  Indian  without  religion.  He  will  take  the  money  and 
rations  given  him,  feast  as  long  as  provisions  last,  and  then 
return  to  pagan  starvation  and  misery.  The  Catholic 
Church   alone   can   truly   Christianize   and   civilize   the 


itm 


LABORS  AT  GRAND  RIVER. 


151 


Indian.  L<K>k  at  Paraguay  iindor  the  .h;8uits  and  Cali- 
fornia nndcr  tlio  Franciscans. 

Speaking  of  liis  new  mission,  he  writes  to  tlic  Lcopol- 
dine  Scx?iefy  as  follows: 

''O  how  nmeh  do  T  wish  to  soon  have  a  lieeoniing  ehureh 
and  a  eonuiKxlions,  ])ro[)erly-fitted  up  school !  The  found- 
ing of  a  new  mission  in  such  a  wild  and  distant  cxmntry 
costs  much,  very  much  indeed.  But,  considered  in  the  light 
of  faith,  all  these  expenses  are  nothing  when  compared  to 
the  gi'eat  good  that  is  therehy  realized.  How  many  souls 
arc  saved  from  eternal  ruin  through  the  creation  of  a  new 
mission,  who  otherwise  would  have  perished  eternally ! 
And  is  not  the  salvation  of  a  single  immortal  soul  worth 
more  thau  all  the  things  of  this  world ';•  Would  not  J(>svis 
Christ  he  ready  to  be  crucified  anew  to  save  even  one  single 
soul,  if  it  could  not  be  saved  otherwise  (J  ()  that  the  want 
of  temporal  support  might  never  hinder  my  progress  in  the 
conversion  of  the  pofvr  Indians  !  I  begin  to  fear  this  when 
I  reflect  on  the  great  outlavs  whicli  are  absolutely  neces- 
sary  in  the  establishing  of  my  new  missions.  In  this,  my 
anxiety  and  fear,  I  appear  before  you,  my  dear  benefactx)rs 
in  my  dear  fatherland,  as  intercessor  in  behalf  of  my  poor 
Indians  so  deserving  of  pity.  I  stretch  out  my  arms  im- 
ploringly to  you  and  beg  you  to  have  compassion  on  your 
unhappy  brethren  in  this  part  of  the  world,  who  are  walk- 
ing in  the  ways  of  blind  paganism  towards  perdition.  You 
have  the  great  happiness  of  being  Christians,  of  knowing 
God,  and  of  being  on  the  way  that  leads  to  life.  Procure, 
as  far  as  it  is  in  your  power,  this  same  inestimable  blessing 
for  your  poor  brethren  in  this  country." 

Besides  the  uneasiness  arising  from  pecuniary  embar- 
rassments, T.  I^araga  felt  keenly  the  painful  situation  of 
being  obliged  to  live  in  the  midst  of  pagan  wickedness, 
drunkenness,  and  superstition.  There  is  something  p^^cu- 
liar  about  such  pagan  places.  Everything  is  repulsive  to 
Christian  feelings.     On  all  sides  pagan  objects  meet  the 


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152 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


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cjo;  tlio  oar  is  ofTcndcHl  bv  the  sound  of  pngan  dnniis  and 
rcvclrj.  'I'lio  very  air  scvnis  infected  with  pagan  diabol- 
ism. The  missionary  feels  again  and  again  the  truth  of 
the  Pslamist's  Avords:  "Oii  antem  gentium  daemonia," 
"tho  gods  of  the  gentiles  are  the  devils."  lie  feels  that 
pagan  worship  is  truly  devil-worship.  Everything  in  such 
a  pagan  village  jars  on  his  Christian  feelings.  He  seems 
to  feel  the  demoniacal  influence  pervading  the  place.  He 
feels  a  strange,  invisible  power  fighting  him,  resisting  him, 
repelling  him  at  every  step.  He  has  entered  the  devil's 
domains  and  whole  armies  of  wicked  spirits  seem  to  be 
working  against  him.  The  writer  owns  he  always  felt  this 
strange  sensation  whenever  ho  went  to  such  a  pagan  vil- 
lage or  entered  a  thoroughly  pagan  house.  The  very 
atmosphere  breathed  paganism.  With  a  feeling  of  relief 
he  would  leave  such  places,  to  which  he  would  never  go 
did  not  duty  impel  him.  Perhaps  other  missionaries  may 
not  have  been  so  impressed ;  but  most  likely  his  experience 
is  also  theirs. 


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ill 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  INDIAN  DRUNKENNESS  AT  GRAND  RIVER;  F. 

BARAGA\s  LIFE  ENDANGERED.       INDIAN  COUNCIL. 

F.  BARAGA  DEDICATES  HIS  NEW  CHURCH. 


We  will  lot  F.  Baraga  describe  the  state  of  things  at 
Grand  River.     He  says : 

"Indians  arc,  as  a  rule,  very  much  addicted  to  drunken- 
ness. However,  they  have  not  always  an  oppoi-tunity 
of  indulging  in  this  vice  because  they  cannot  everywhere 
find  intoxicating  liquor.  But  here  at  Grand  River  there 
are  so  many  fur-traders,  who  follow  the  Indians  whither- 
soever they  go  and  give  them  liquor  in  order  to  get  their 
furs,  that  the  Indians  of  this  neighborhood  and  even  in  this 
place  are  almost  continually  drunk.  I  have  spoken  about 
this  matter  with  several  of  these  traders,  who  sell  their 
own  souls  and  the  souls  of  the  poor  Indians  to  the  hellish 
enemy.  But  I  receive  nothing  but  insults  and  threats  in 
answer.  They  hearken  to  my  words  even  less  than  the 
rudest  and  wildest  Indian.  To  revenge  themselves  on  me, 
they  bring  much  more  liquor  to  the  Indians  and  advise 
them  strongly  not  to  listen  or  believe  me  and  also  slander 
me  as  much  as  possible. 

"Under  such  circumstances  it  is  evidently  hard  to  hold 
mission  and  convert  these  pagans.  However,  'against  God 
there  is  no  counsel.'  Xotwithstanding  all  this  opposition, 
many  are  converted  to  our  holy  faith  and  through  Baptism 
received  into  our  holv  church. 

"It  is  a  terrible  sight  to  see  an  Indian  in  the  state  of 
drunkenness,  especially  the  women.  They  are  then  real 
furies.  Many  Indian  women  here  have  tio  nose.  When 
I  came  here  the  first  time  I  did  not  know  how  to  account 


It'  i 


164 


RT.  REV.    FREDERIC   BABAGA. 


.  ti 


H^iili^is^l' 


:ni 


11 


for  this.  I  made  inquiries  and  learnt  that  Indian  women, 
when  dnink,  attack  one  another  like  raging  wolves  and  bite 
off  on(;  another's  noses.  Others,  again,  have  lost  one  or 
more  fingers  in  these  bacchanalian  fights.  The  men  attack 
each  other  with  their  large  knives,  which  they  always 
carry.  Often  do  we  hear  of  murders  perpetrated  in  drunk- 
enness. 

^'My  life  is  here  in  danger.  At  night  I  am  obliged  to 
carefully  and  securely  lock  my  door  in  order  to  preserve 
mvsclf  from  the  visits  of  these  monsters. 

*^A  few  days  ago  there  were  many  dnmken  Indians  in 
our  village.  A  fur-trader  had  brought  them  such  a  quan- 
tity of  whisky  that  they  kept  on  drinking  four  days  and 
nights  without  stopping.  Our  Christian  Indians  felt  very 
bad  at  this  and  were  in  danger.  One  of  my  best  Christians 
came  near  losing  his  life  during  those  unhappy  days.  One 
of  these  drunken  wretches  came  to  this  man's  house  and 
spoke  terribly  against  religion.  Finally  he  tried  to  stab 
him  with  his  knife.  It  Avas  only  with  the  greatest  diffi- 
culty that  the  Christian  Indian  averted  this  calamity. 

''During  these  same  unhappy  days  I  myself  had  a 
nightly  visit  from  dnmken  Indians.  Whilst  they  were 
yet  a  gi*e.it  distance  from  my  house  their  terrible  shouts 
aroused  me  from  sleep.  When  they  came  to  my  door  they 
tried  to  enter,  shouting  terribly  at  the  same  time.  I  could 
not  understand  a  word  they  said.  I  remained  quiet  trust- 
ing in  divine  Providence.  When  they  saw  tliat  they  could 
not  get  in,  they  wejxt  away  how^ling.  Whenever  I  notice 
that  there  are  drunken  Indians  in  the  village  I  lock  my 
door  immediately  when  evening  arrives. 

"In  Arbre  Croche  I  did  not  have  to  undergo  such 
troubles  and  dangers,  for  the  Indians  there  are  for  the 
most  part  converted  and  the  few  remaining  pagans  can  do 
no  harm.  Nevertheless,  I  have  never  repented  of  having 
come  here,  as  Arbre  Croche  is  far  better  provided  for 
under  the  care  of  my  successor,  the  enlightened  and  zealous 


h  I 


DEDICATES  HIS  NEW  CHURCH. 


155 


Father  Siinderl,  than  it  was  when  under  my  charge. 
Besides,  I  have  the  consolation  of  seeing  that  many  here 
who  heretofore  had  no  knowledge  of  Christianity,  through 
God's  grace  and  help  have  been  converted  to  the  Christian 
religion  and  now  live  like  exemplary  Christians." 

In  the  January  number  of  the  American  Catholic 
Review  is  a  most  interesting  article  from  the  pen  of  Hon. 
Eichard  K.  Elliott,  of  Detroit,  :Mich.,  entitled:  ^Fred- 
erick Baraga  among  the  Ottawas."  The  gifted  writer 
gives  a  detailed  account  of  the  nocturnal  attack  made  by  a 
crowd  of  drunken  pagan  Ottawas  on  F.  Baraga's  house  at 
Grand  River  Mission.  The  facts,  as  recorded,  are  taken 
from  a  manuscript  account  of  Rov.  Walter  Elliott,  the  cel- 
ebrated Paulist  Missionary,  brother  of  the  above-named 
writer,  and  were  communicated  to  him  by  Very  Rev. 
Edward  Jacker,  who,  no  doubt,  received  them  from  a  per- 
fectly reliable  source.    Hon.  Richard  R.  Elliott  writes : 

"There  were  at  the  time  a  number  of  Ottawa  villages 
in  the  Grand  River  Valley.  At  the  chief  canton  a  Baptist 
missionary  had  been  established  for  some  years,  but  he  had 
secured  only  a  small  number  of  followers.  Here  was  the 
seat  of  the  United  States  Indian  agency  for  southern  Mich- 
igan; Indian  traders  and  their  white  followers  were 
numerous,  Avith  the  result  that  the  Ottawas  in  these  can- 
tons, who  were  nearly  all  unbelievers,  had  become  very 
demoralized.  Raw  Ohio  whisky  could  be  had  for  twenty- 
five  cents  per  gallon. 

"Debauchery  had  taken  a  strong  hold  to  the  great  pecu- 
niary advantage  of  the  Indian  traders.  But  Father 
Baraga  built  his  cabin  where  the  city  of  Grand  Rp.pids 
now  stands,  and  he  began  to  preach  in  the  Ottawa  diiilect. 
This  enraged  the  Baptist  missionary's  followers,  who 
found  active  allies  among  the  traders.  They  instigated  a 
drunken  crowd  one  night  to  attack  Father  Baraga's  cabin. 
He  had  been  timely  warned  of  their  coming  and  had 
strongly  barred  the  doors  and  windows.    Fortunately,  they 


!!ll 


I J 


fT- 


SUim 


mmmmsBBB 


I    ;   ) 


156 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


l!fi 


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IH- 


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i  i  i 
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.   li 


were  too  dnink  to  effect  an  entrance.  Had  they  succeeded 
ho  would  have  been  raiirddred.  For  hours  this  drunken 
mob  besieged  his  cabin.  Their  yells  were  frightful.  He 
expected  every  moment  to  sec  the  bark  roof  ablaze  and  con- 
templated his  death  by  fire.  Word,  however,  was  sent  to 
the  acting  United  States  marshal,  of  the  riot,  and  he  came 
and  dispersed  the  rioters. 

"All  during  this  infernal  uproar  Father  Baraga 
remained  on  his  knees  in  prayer.  Convinced  of  the  evil 
brought  upon  his  people  by  the  abuse  of  liquor,  he  came 
to  the  ox)nclusion  to  offer  himself  as  an  example.  There 
in  that  cabin,  but  unawed  by  his  assailants,  he  solemnly 
vowed  to  abstain  from  intoxicating  drink  during  the  whole 
course  of  his  life.  He  kept  that  pledge  faithfully  to  the 
last.  But  many  a  time,  when  overcome  with  exhaustion, 
when  his  stomach  was  nauseated  by  unpalatable  food,  when 
shivering  in  his  wet  clothing,  or  partly  frozen  during  Lake 
Superior  winters,  he  sadly  needed  a  glass  of  wine  or 
brandy  to  revive  both  body  and  mind,  he  may  have  been 
tempted,  but  the  night  scene  in  his  cabin  on  the  Grand 
River  would  recur  to  his  mind  and  he  offered  his  j)rivation 
to  his  Redeemer  whenever  experienced." 

Baraga's  combination  church,  school  and  house  was 
50x30  feet  and  12  feet  high,  a  wooden  stiiicture,  most 
probably  of  liewTi  logs.  He  estimates  the  cost  at  a  little 
over  $800.  During  sugar-making  time  the  Indians  were 
in  their  sugar-camps,  but  on  Sundays  they  used  to  come 
to  the  village  to  assist  at  Holy  Mass. 

A  day's  journey  from  the  mission  there  were  many 
Arbre  Croche  Indians,  who  were  accustomed  to  winter 
there  to  hunt  and  trap  and  make  maple-sugar.  The  good 
Father  complains  of  the  rapacity  of  the  fur-traders,  who 
cheated  the  Indians  and  demoralized  them  by  bringing 
whisky.  On  the  26th  of  Febniary  some  Indians  from 
Arbre  Croche  came  to  the  mission  and  asked  F.  Baraga  to 
make  them  a  missionary  visit.     After  a  long  and  painful 


DEDICATES  HIS  NEW  CHURCH. 


167 


jouniey  through  trackless  forests  and  s>yainps,  over  bridge- 
less  brooks  and  rivers,  he  arrived  at  their  camping  ground. 
They  received  their  dear  Father  with  every  mark  of  sin- 
cere joy  and  attachment.  They  had  twelve  sugar-camps. 
Sometimes  two  or  three  families  live  in  such  an  encamp- 
ment, working  together  harmoniously.  Although  they  had 
intended  to  stay  there  but  a  few  months,  they  had  erected 
a  temporary  church,  in  which  they  would  meet  twice  on 
Sundays  and  at  other  times  to  oifer  up  their  prayers  in 
common.  F.  Baraga  remained  with  his  fervent  neophytes 
three  days  and  said  Holy  Mass  with  feelings  of  gratitude 
to  God.  All  of  them  went  to  confession  and  many  of  them 
also  received  then  their  Easter  holy  communion.  They 
had  been  preparing  themselves  for  the  reception  of  the 
Blessed  Sacrament  and  so  they  received  it  with  due  appre- 
ciation of  its  greatness  and  holiness.  They  would  come 
to  him  one  after  another  and  say,  in  child-like  simplicity: 
"Father,  examine  me;  perhaps  you  will  find  me  fit  to 
receive  holy  communion."  On  this  trip  ho  baptized  three 
adult  Indians. 

From  there  he  went  almost  a  day's  journey  farther,  to 
some  Indian  wigwams.  The  name  of  the  place  w^as  Mash- 
kigong  (Muskegon  swamp).  The  preceding  summer,  on 
his  waj''  to  Grand  River,  he  had  baptized  there  twenty-one 
Indians.  Now  there  were  over  thirty  converts.  They 
promised  to  build  a  chapel  and  he  designated  the  place  for 
it,  a  beautiful  eminence  overlooking  the  river  and  Lake 
Mashkigong.  They  intended  to  build  it  pretty  large,  as 
almost  all  the  pagans  of  the  settlement  were  determined  to 
embrace  Christianity. 

On  the  20th  of  April,  1834,  the  third  Sunday  after 
Easter,  F.  Baraga  had  the  consolption  of  blessing  his  new 
church.    He  describes  the  joyful  solemnity  as  follows: 

"The  serenity  of  the  firmament  accorded  beautifully 
with  the  joyful  celebration.  When  the  usual  hour  for 
divine    service    had    arrived    we    walked    with    solemn 


ii 


I'll 


1 1  •■",' 


iii' 


\V 


158 


KT.  REV.  FKEDEKIC    BARAGA. 


'  I 


■  .1 


i!!i 


M 


but  liapjn-  feelings  In  procession  to  the  church.  An  Indian 
carried  tJie  j)eaceful  banner  of  the  cross  ahead  of  us  and 
planted  it  in  front  of  the  churcli.  Quite  a  number  of 
pagan  Indians  and  Americans,  of  whom  the  greater  part 
do  not  profess  any  religion,  followed  the  procession  in 
order  to  view  the  dedication  ceremonies — a  thing  never 
before  witnessed  here. 

"The  gifts  in  pictures  and  church  articles,  which  my 
pious  benefactors  had  sent  me  from  Europe,  did  me  good 
service  at  this  solemnity.  They  are  still  of  gi'cat  use  to  me 
for  adorning  the  altar  and  church  and  for  performing 
divine  service  with  due  solemnity."  The  church  was  dedi- 
cated  to  the  Blessed  Virgin. 

Since  his  last  report  to  the  Leopoldine  Society,  dated 
March  7th,  1804,  up  to  the  24th  of  May,  F.  Baraga  bap- 
tized twenty-six  Indians.  One  great  reason  why  converts 
were  less  numerous  at  Grand  Kiver  than  elsewhere  was 
because  many  of  them  lived  so  far  away  in  the  woods — 
several  days'  journey  apart — which  made  it  very  difficult 
for  the  zealous  missionary  to  visit  them.  The  number  of 
his  Indian  scholars  was  thirty-three,  all  of  whom  he  him- 
self had  baptized.  Besides  these  he  had  many  French  and 
English-speaking  pupils. 

On  the  13th  of  June  he  went  to  Mashkigong,  where  he 
was  eagerly  expected,  and  wdiere  there  were  still  many 
pagans.  They  worked  industriously  at  their  new  church, 
which  was  dedicated  to  St.  Joseph.  While  awaiting  the 
completion  of  the  church  he  said  Mass  every  day  in  the 
house  of  an  Indian,  and  baptized  ten  Indians,  mostly 
adults. 

Baraga  describes  an  Indian  council  that  took  place  at 
Grand  Kiver  in  the  summer  of  1834.  Keports  were  freely 
circulating  that  the  Ottavras  were  to  be  transported  to  some 
western  country,  a  thing  they  dreaded  very  much.  They 
were  entirely  opposed  to  ceding  their  lands  to  the  United 
States  government.    The  public  press  declared,  it  is  true, 


DEDICATES  HIS  NEW  CHURCH. 


159 


that  the  jvovoniiiuMit  would  not  take  the  Iiuliaii  country 
by  force,  but  would  buy  it. 

I'hese  <;ove  run  lent  transactions  have  always  appeared 
to  the  writer  as  the  veriest  lunubuij,'  in  the  world.  The 
Indian  does  not  want  to  sell,  but  lie  is  urged  and,  so  to  say, 
forced  to  ac(iuiesce  in  the  demands  of  the  government  com- 
missioners. ^Moreover,  the  Indian  does  not  receive  a  thou- 
sandth part  of  the  leal  value  of  the  land  he  (;edes.  Then 
CM>mes  the  Indian  trader  with  a  long  account  against  him. 
The  claim  is  allowed  and  the  poor  Indian  goes  away  minus 
land  and  monev,  or  at  least  he  has  verv  little  to  show  for 
extensive  domains  bartered  away,  so  to  sj)eak,  for  a  song, 
and  whicn  ecpial  in  size  a  European  emjiire. 

To  give  the  reader  some  idea  of  the  wretched  condition 
of  the  poor  Indians,  which  made  them  give  away 
for  trifling  annuities,  large  tracts  of  the  most  valu- 
able agricultural,  pine  and  mineral  lands,  the  value  of 
which  they  never  knew  or  realized,  but  which  was  well 
comprehended  by  the  grasping  "Kitchi  Mokoman" — "Big 
Knife" — American.  We  append  here  the  concluding 
remarks  of  two  of  their  chiefs,  Esh-ke-bug-e-coshe  and 
Nay-  naw-ong-gay-bee.  (Wis.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  II.,  pp.  343, 
344.) 

At  a  treaty  made  at  the  Mississippi,  in  1855,  the  chief. 
Esh-ke-bug-e-coshe,  "Wide  Mouth,"  made  the  following 
remarks,  wlien  the  government  agents  refused  to  accept  a 
proposition  of  the  chiefs,  to  sell  their  lands  at  a  price 
double  that  offered  them  by  the  agent.    He  said : 

"Mv  Father,  I  live  away  north  on  the  headwaters  of 
the  Mississippi.  My  children  (band)  are  poor  and  desti- 
tute and,  as  it  were,  almost  naked,  while  you,  my  Father, 
are  rich  and  well  clothed.  When  I  left  my  home  to  come 
to  this  treaty  to  sell  my  lands — for  we  know  that  we  must 
sell  for  what  we  can  get — the  whites  must  have  them — my 
braves,  young  men,  women  and  children,  held  a  council 
and  begged  of  me  to  do  the  best  I  could  in  selling  their 


I 


I'! 


Hi 


«: 


!t|  ' 


§ 


i;l 


V\ 


ICO 


BT.  REV.    i-'REDERIC   BARAGA. 


h 
•'*: 


I' 

n 

I 


l'  ml 

till 


homes.  And  now,  iwv  Fatlior,  1  hcg  of  you  to  accept  of 
tlie  proposition  1  have  made  you,  and  tomorrow  1  will 
stall  for  houKi;  and  then  you  count  the  days  which  you 
know  it  will  take  me  to  reach  there,  and  on  the  day  of  my 
arrival  look  north,  and  as  you  see  the  northern  lights 
stream  up  in  the  sky,  imagine  to  yourself  that  it  is  the  con-- 
gratulation  of  joy  of  my  chihlren  ascending  to  (iod,  that 
you  have  accej)ted  of  the  proposition  1  have  offered  you." 

At  the  treaty  made  in  La  Pointe,  Wis.,  in  1854,  Nay- 
naw-ong-gay-hee,  tin?  "J)ressing  l^ird,"  one  of  the  head 
chiefs  of  the  Courtes-Oreilles  hand  of  Chippewas,  made 
a  speech  expatiating  on  the  destitute  condition  of  his 
people,  who  were  ahjectly  poor,  many  of  the  children  being 
perfectly  naked.  We  will  insert  only  his  concluding 
remarks : 

"My  Father,  look  around  you,  upon  the  faces  of  my 
poor  people.  Sickness  and  hunger,  whisky  and  war  are 
killing  us  fast.  We  are  dying  and  fading  away.  We  drop 
to  the  ground  like  the  trees  before  the  axe  of  the  white 
man;  we  are  weak,  you  are  strong.  We  are  but  foolish 
Indians;  you  have  wisdom  and  knowledge  in  your  head. 
We  want  your  help  and  protection.  We  have  no  homes, 
no  cattle,  no  lands,  and  we  :'jill  not  need  them  long.  The 
winds  shall  soon  moan  around  the  last  lodffc  of  vour  red 
children.  I  grieve,  but  cannot  turn  our  fate  away.  The 
sun,  the  moon,  the  rivers,  the  forests,  w'e  love  so  well,  we 
must  leave.  We  shall  soon  sleep  in  the  ground — we  will 
not  awake  again.  I  have  no  more  to  say  to  you,  my 
Father." 

The  reader  will  please  to  excuse  this  digression.  We 
shall  now  continue  our  narrative. 

On  this  occasion  a  large  delegation  of  Arbre  Croche 
Indians  came  to  Grand  Kiver  to  deliberate  on  what  was  to 
be  done  to  avert  the  threatening  calamity,  the  loss  of  their 
homes  and  lands.  They  assembled  in  the  open  air  in  a 
small  round  valley,  in  the  midst  of  which  several  fires  were 


DEDECA1  JS   HIS   NEW   CHURCH. 


161 


made.  At  convenient  places  tobacco  and  fire  were  placed; 
also  a  large  kettle  with  water,  sweetened  with  majjle  sugar, 
to  drink.  At  the  entrance  of  the  valley  they  planted  a 
large  United  States  flag. 

After  all  necessarv  preparations  had  been  made,  a  sign 
^vas  given  and  the  Indians  came  walking  gravely  and 
silently.  They  scpiatted  down  on  the  ground  in  true 
Indian  fashion,  sitting  in  £.  circle.  Then  everyone  lighted 
his  })ip{^  and  began  to  smoke.  For  a  long  time  not  a  word 
was  said.  At  length  one  of  them  arose  and  said:  "Xow, 
brothers,  whv  have  vou  come  here?  What  is  vonr  inten- 
tion  ?  Come,  speak !"  Then  the  orator  of  Arbre  (/roche, 
a  venerable  old  man  and  an  exemj)lary  Christian,  arose. 
He  went  around  the  circle,  shaking  hands  with  each  man 
as  a  token  of  friendship  and  good  will.  After  some  pre- 
liminary remarks  he  declared  that  all  the  Indians  of* 
Arbre  Croche  were  firmly  resolved  never  to  code  their  land 
to  the  United  States,  and  not  to  make  themselves  and  their 
children  unhappy. 

After  concluding  his  speech,  he  handed  to  the  head 
chief  of  the  Grand  River  band  a  string  of  glass  beads 
stnmg  on  a  green  piece  of  tape  or  ribbon,  as  a  mark  of 
their  union.  Another  pause.  The  head  chief  then  passed 
the  string  of  beads  to  his  next  neighbor,  and  so  it  went 
from  hand  to  hand  around  the  circle.  After  another  long 
pause,  one  after  another  of  the  Grand  River  Indians  went 
to  their  speaker  and  told  him  secretly  their  sentiments  as 
to  the  matter  under  discussion.  The  latter  then  arose  and 
went  to  the  Indians  of  Arbre  Groche  and  shook  hands  with 
each  of  them.  He  then  declared  in  the  name  of  his  people 
that  they,  too,  were  determined  never  to  cede  their  lands. 
Other  speeches  followed,  and  so  they  spent  the  whole  day 
in  council. 

This  reminds  the  writer  of  a  similar  council  held  some 
200  years  ago  at  Saiilt  Ste.  Marie,  to  deliberate  on  the  fate 
of  a  couple  of  bad  Indians,  who  had  been  guilty  of  mur- 


m 


v-'\-K 


1 


163 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   RARAGA. 


I  : 


:i^ 


§. 


t 


JS] 


^i. 


Ml 


(Icrinp;  soino  Frenchmen.  ''They  wasted  lots  of  good 
tohaceo,  smoking  for  two  days,  and — tliat  was  all  they 
Hceomjjiished.  Finally  the  French  took  the  matter  in  hand 
themselves  and  made  short  work  of  it  by  summarily  exe- 
cuting the  guilty  ])a"ties,  altl^mgh  they  (the  French)  were 
vastly  in  the  minoritv. 

During  the  summer  and  fall  of  1834  F.  Baraga  fre- 
quently visited  his  scattered  missions.  The  roads,  if  any, 
were  very  }KK»r.  Often  nothing  but  Indian  trails  led 
through  forests  and  miry  swamps.  (Mouds  of  mosquitoes 
alHicted  the  poor  Father  on  these  apostolic  journeys.  Dur- 
ing the  cold  nights  of  autumn  he  often  slept  in  the  open 
air,  with  j)erliai)s  only  a  single  blanket  to  cover  him.  This 
gives  ns  some  idea  of  the  many  hardships  the  saintly  mis- 
sionary endured  in  quest  of  souls. 

"But,"  says  he,  'Svhen  a  person  notices  the  holy  long- 
ing with  which  the  distant  living  Indians  await  the  coming 
of  the  missionary,  and  how  they  implore  him  with  child- 
like importunit;;  at  his  departure  to  come  soon  again,  when 
he  notices  all  this  he  thinks  no  more  of  the  hardships, 
but  as  soon  as  the  time  of  the  missionary  visit 
comes  he  sets  out  on  his  journey.  From  now  (November 
3)  till  February  I  will  not  undertake  any  mission  jour- 
neys, for  at  Christmas  all  Indians  living  at  a  distance  como 
here  (to  Grand  Eiver  church)  to  perform  their  devotions. 
In  Febmary,  if  God  keeps  me  alive,  I  will  visit  them  in 
their  sugar-camps." 

In  September  F.  Baraga  visited  an  Indian  hamlet  two 
days'  journey  up  the  river.  As  was  his  custom,  he  had 
sent  a  precursor  during  the  summer  to  said  village  "to  pre- 
pare the  way  before  him."  When  the  missionary  arrived 
he  found  some  well-disposed  Indians,  whom  he  instructed 
and  baptized.  Others,  however,  hardened  their  hearts 
against  the  call  of  grace.  They  said  that  they  had  already 
a  religion,  the  Indian  religion,  which  they  preferred  to  all 
others  and  which  they  would  always  keep.     In  vain  did 


DEDICATER   HIS    NEW   CHUBCH. 


163 


the  iiiissi(t!uiry  tell  tlicin  thut  a  religion,  wliioli  the  Great 
Spirit  liiiiisclt'  liad  made,  must  certainly  hv  better  than  the 
Buperstitious  inventions  and  dreams  of  tlieir  Indian  foro- 
fnthors.  IJnt  all  his  reasoning  was  of  no  avail.  "As 
many  believed  as  were  foreordained  to  eternal  life."  The 
Gospel  makes  its  tonr  during  the  centuries  of  time  through 
the  world,  ^[any  receive  it  and  are  saved ;  more  reject  it 
and  are  forever  lost.  Four  entire  families  were  baptized 
in  this  hamlet. 

Towards  the  beginning  of  November  he  visited  the 
mission  of  St.  Josei)h  at  Mashkigong,  where  his  soul  was 
refreslied  with  abundant  consolation  and  joy.  Although 
Bome  of  the  neophytes  were  from  four  to  six  days'  journey 
in  the  woods  hunting,  they  came  to  the  church  of  St 
Joseph  on  the  day  appointed  in  order  to  assist  at  all  the 
devotions  to  be  held  during  the  priest's  stay  and  to  receive 
the  holy  Sacraments. 

What  an  example  for  so  many  lukewarm  Catholics, 
who  will  scarcely  walk  a  few  blocks  to  go  to  Mass  on  Sun- 
days! On  the  great  day  of  reckoning  these  poor  Indians 
will  arise  and  condemn  them,  for  they  walked  100  to  200 
miles  through  forests  and  swamps  to  go  to  Mass. 

F.  Baraga  had  the  consolation  of  again  baptizing  five 
Indians  at  Mashkigong  (Muskegon).  One  caso,  particu- 
larly, deserves  mention.  A  girl  of  seventeen  years  desired 
very  much  to  be  baptized.  Her  father,  however,  was  a 
hardened  pagan,  full  of  bitter  hatred  against  Christianity. 
When  the  girl  asked  her  father  for  permission  to  go  to 
Mashkigong,  the  latter  surmised  the  reason  and  refused 
her  point  blank.  She,  however,  persevered  in  her  request. 
Finally  he  said,  angrily,  to  her:  ''Go,  then,  but  don't  be 
so  foolish  as  to  become  a  Christian.  But  if  in  spite  of  my 
prohibition  you  do  become  a  Christian,  you  have  nothing 
to  expect  of  me  but  that  I  will  cut  off  both  your  ears." 
Hearing  this,  F.  Baraga  asked  her  very  carefully  and 
earnestly  whether  she  still  wished  to  receive  holy  Baptism, 


S 


v? 


■ill 

jil!! 

;,  'II 


: 


164 


RT.   RBV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


She  answered  with  a  firm  vo.'ce  that  she  was  unchangeably 
resolved  to  become  a  Christiar ,  She  was  baptized.  This 
reminds  one  of  the  Christians  or  the  first  centuries. 
Whether  her  father  carried  out  his  biiital  threat  could  not 
be  learned.  On  her  part,  she  declarec.  that  she  was  willing 
to  suffer  all  for  her  holy  religion. 

At  Christmas  mostly  all  his  Indians  attended  church, 
although  some  of  them  were  hunting  at  a  distance  of  three 
or  four  days'  journey  from  Grand  River  mission.  What 
a  spectacle  to  see  a  number  of  poor,  famishing  Indians 
walking  on  heavy  snowshoes  for  three  or  four  days  con- 
secutively to  attend  Christmas  Mass  and  receive  the  holy 
Sacraments !  Bar-aga  remarks  that  some  of  them  were  ven- 
erable old  men  and  women,  weak  and  sickly,  and  others 
mere  children  from  ten  to  twelve  years  of  age!  Yes,  F. 
Baraga  made  not  only  Christians,  but  heroes  of  these  poor 
savages  of  the  forest.  In  this  respect  he  was  like  all  the 
great  missionaries  of  ancient  and  modern  times,  a  St. 
Patrick,  St.  Boniface,  St  Francis  Xavier,  and  a  host  of 
others.  He  was  a  man  of  God,  imbued  with  God's  spirit, 
'and  God  was  with  him  wherever  he  went,  confirming  his 
words,  if  not  "with  signs,"  at  least  with  proofs  no  less  con- 
vincing, for  to  change  brutal  savages  into  fervent  Chris- 
tians is  a  gr*  ater  miracle  in  the  order  of  grace  than  raising 
the  dead  to  life. 

Before  leaving  th  j  Michigan  missions  to  accompany 
J'  Baraga  to  La  Pointe,  Wisconsin,  we- wish  to  make  a  few 
remarks  as  to  the  state  of  those  missions  at  the  time  of  his 
d?.  parture. 

Bishop  Rese,  in  a  letter  to  the  Leopoldine  Society, 
dated  October  12th,  1834,  estimates  the  number  of  Indian 
converts  in  his  diocese  at  three  thousand,  with  twelve 
churches  or  chapels.  At  Arbre  Croche  he  found  twelve 
hundred  exemplary  Catholic  Indians,  of  whom  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  received  from  him  confirmation.  He  says 
most  of  them  could  read  and  ^vrite  and  lived  like  civilized 


DEDICATES  HIS  NEW  CHURCH. 


165 


people  in  houses.  He  says  Father  Sanderl  learned  Ottawa 
in  nine  months  to  such  an  extent  that  he  was  going  to  pub- 
lish a  grammar  and  dictionary  of  that  language.  We  think 
the  good  Father's  zeal  was  rather  ahead  of  his  ability.  No 
man  could  learn  Ottawa  in  so  short  a  time  to  any  great 
degree  of  proficiency. 

In  1834  the  Catholic  church  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie  was 
plundered,  the  windows  smashed,  the  altar  utensils  thrown 
out  doors  and  destroyed,  the  missal  torn  to  shreds,  and  the 
church  itself  set  on  fire.  Father  Hatscher,  C.  SS.  R., 
was  stationed  there  at  that  time.  It  was  the  work  of  a 
fanatical  mob. 


iih 


M 
ij 


I 


'i. 


'v'M 

i 

1 

1 

CirAPTER  XXV^ 

F.   BARAGA  J-KAVES  GRAND  RIVER  MISSION/  WINTERS  AT   ST. 
CLAIRE;  GOES  TO  LA  POINTE,  WISCONSIN. 


In  February,  1835,  Father  Andrew  Viszoczky,  a 
Hungarian  missionary,  wlio  had  been  stationed  at  St. 
Claire's  mission,  not  far  from  Detroit,  near  Lake  St. 
Claire,  came  to  Grand  River  with  the  secret  wish  to  remain 
there,  if  Bishop  Rese  would  consent.  F.  Baraga  was  agree- 
ably surprised  when  Father  Viszoczky  told  him  his  plan. 
F.  Baraga,  who  had  intended  to  go  to  Detroit  on  some  busi- 
ness, told  him  that  he  would  speak  to  the  bishop  about  the 
matter,  and  that  he  would  do  whatever  the  bishop  would 
tell  him. 

Father  Baraga  went  to  Detroit  and  told  his  bishop 
about  the  arrival  of  Father  Viszoczkv  in  Grand  River  and 
the  latter's  desire  to  remain  there.  The  good  bishop  was 
perfectly  satisfied  with  this  plan  and  told  Baraga  that  he 
would  take  him  along  to  the  north  the  next  spring  to  found 
there  a  new  mission. 

Father  Baraga,  in  his  letter  to  the  Leopoldine  Society, 
is  entirely  silent  as  to  the  reason  of  his  departure  from 
Grand  River  mission,  except  that  he  was  desirous  of  carry- 
ing the  light  of  the  Gospel  to  other  Indian  tribes  immersed 
as  yet  in  paganism,  lie  simply  says  that  Rev.  Andrew 
Viszoczky,  a  Hungarian  priest,  came  to  see  him 
and  expressed  a  desire  to  remain  in  Grand  River 
mission;  that  he  (Baraga)  went  to  see  his  bishop  about  the 
matter  and  hat  the  latter  approved  of  Father  Viszoczky'a 
plan.    Hon,  Richard  R.  Elliott,  however,  in  his  above-cited 


LDAVBS   GRAND   RIVER   MISSION. 


167 


able  article  gives  the  real  reason  of  F.  Baraga's  going,  and 
that  was:  the  opposition  of  the  Indian  agent  at  Grand 
River  and  of  his  party,    lie  writes : 

''Father  Baraga  had  converted  and  baptized  about  two 
hundred  Ottawas  on  the  Grand  River.  He  had  reformed 
the  habits  of  these  neophytes  before  baptism,  having  won 
them  over  from  their  i)ropen3ity  to  get  drunk,  and  they 
gradually  fell  into  the  practice  of  industry  and  thrift. 

"Their  example  had  had  its  good  effect  on  others;  but 
there  were  opposing  influences  at  work  of  such  strength  as 
he  had  never  encountered  before  in  his  missionary 
experience. 

"The  situation  was  this:  All  that  part  of  the  Grand 
River  valley,  where  at  the  time  the  Ottawa  cantons  were 
located  and  which  embraced  the  field  of  Father  Baraga's 
missionary  labors,  was  an  Indian  reservation  under  the 
United  States  government. 

"Within  the  limits  of  this  reservation  the  potency  of 
the  United  States  Indian  agent  was  supreme;  he  had  for 
his  assistance,  in  case  of  need,  a  small  force  of  United 
States  soldiers ;  while  on  any  extraordinary  occasion  he 
could  have  a  full  regiment  sent  from  Fort  Dearborn,  now 
Chicago,  to  the  reservation.  But  the  fate  of  the  Ottawas 
had  already  been  decided. 

"The  outbreak  of  the  Black  Hawk  war  had  demon- 
strated the  danger  menacing  the  western  frontier  settle- 
ments from  the  vicinity  of  such  Indian  nations  as  the  Otta- 
was, Pottawotomis,  Miamis,  Illinois,  and  the  Sacs  and 
Foxes. 

"During  this  outbreak,  by  adroit  and  prompt  measures, 
the  Pottawotomis  and  Prairie  tribes  were  all  assembled  at 
Fort  Dearborn,  placed  under  guard,  and  regularly  rationed 
until  Black  Hawk  had  been  captured,  and  his  revolt  had 
collapsed;  then  they  were  permitted  to  return  to  their 
cantons  placated  with  presents  of  blankets,  kettles  and  sil- 
ver trinkets  for  the  squaws.     The  following  summer  the 


» u 


t 


168 


RT.   REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


Miamis,  Ottawas  and  Pottawotomis  were  assembled  in 
council  at  Fort  Dearborn,  and  by  the  usual  methods  these 
nations  were  induced  to  sij^i  a  treaty  by  which  they  ceded 
tb'ir  reservations  in  Michigan,  Indiana,  Ohio,  Illinoiy  and 
Wisconsin  for  reservations  of  five  million  acres  of  lands 
west  of  the  ]\Iississij)i)i  to  each  of  the  nations  entering  into 
treaty  obligations. 

"But  there  remained  the  matter  of  form  process  of 
obtaining  the  assent  of  the  separate  tribes  (bands)  of  each 
nation  to  their  immigration  to  the  West.  With  the  Chris- 
tian tribes  this  assent  was  not  so  easy  to  obtain.  This  duty 
devolved  upon  the  Indian  agent  resident  with  each  nation. 

"The  Pottawotomis,  who  were  mostly  Christians,  were 
reluctant  to  leave  their  homes  and  the  vicinity  of  the 
graves  of  their  ancestors  where  for  ceni  iries  this  nation 
had  occupied  the  soil  of  the  fairest  regions  of  Michigan 
and  of  Indiana,  and  were  not  unanimous;  but  speculators 
wanted  their  lands,  and  means  were  found  by  the  United 
States  Indian  agent  to  obtain  the  signature  of  a  sufficient 
number  of  chiefs  to  make  a  majority  in  favor  of  removal, 
which  being  in  opposition  to  the  wishes  of  the  minority, 
the  latter  refused  to  leave  their  homes.  A  regiment  of 
United  States  troops  was  sent  from  Fort  Dearborn  to  drive 
these  Christian  men,  women  and  children  from  their  own 
homes  bv  the  bavonet  and  to  escort  them  like  wild  cattle 
to  the  place  assigned  them  in  the  far  distant  West. 

"Hence  the  painful  scenes  accompanying  this  outrage 
to  which  we  have  already  referred.  The  process  of  ob- 
taining the  assent  of  the  separate  bands  of  the  Ottawas  to 
immigration  in  accordance  with  the  national  treaty  was 
then  in  progTcss.  Hence  the  tribal  councils  to  which  all 
came;  hence  the  presence  of  so  many  Indian  traders  on 
the  Grand  River  reservation  and  the  debauchery  prevalent 
while  Father  Baraga  was  there.  It  is  certain  he  would 
not  advise  his  converts  to  leave  their  homes.  The  United 
States  government  did  not  want  a  repetition  of  the  dis- 


H-- 


•  !  '- ' 


WINTERS  AT  ST.  CLAIRE. 


169 


graceful  scenes,  which  had  blackened  its  reputation  in  the 
Pottawotonii  removal.  But  the  Ottawas  were  more  effi- 
cient warriors ;  should  there  be  any  trouble,  another  gen- 
eral Indian  war  might  ensue,  and  the  development  of  the 
Western  states,  then  in  fair  ^.regress,  would  be  retarded; 
Michigan,  which  at  the  time  was  rapidly  filling  with  set- 
tlers, would  be  the  theatre  of  this  war.  The  Indian  agent 
was  instructed  to  effect  the  removal  of  the  Ottawas  peace- 
ably, and  to  avoid  the  violent  methods  resorted  to  with  the 
Pottawotomis.  The  goveniment  had  acquired  the  title  to 
the  Indian  lands  by  treaty,  while  the  less  important  de- 
tails could  be  managed  by  well  kno\vn  methods.  Besides, 
there  was  not  at  the  time  tlie  same  sharp  crowd  of  land 
sharks  and  speculators  eager  to  acquire  lands  in  Michigan 
as  there  had  been  in  Indiana  and  Ohio,  to  rush  the  Indian 
agent  to  rid  the  territory  of  the  original  owners  of  the  soil. 

"While  Father  Baraga  was  so  successful  in  his  apos- 
tolic work,  this  success  was  creating  an  opposition  ho  prob- 
ably was  not  at  first  aware  of. 

"The  reform  in  the  morals  of  the  Ottawas  seriously 
lessened  the  quantity  of  whisky  which  the  Indian  traders 
had  been  selling ;  while  the  probability  that  the  converted 
Ottawa  bands  would  object  to  remove  to  the  unknown 
country  west  of  the  Mississippi  would  bring  the  Indian 
agent  into  trouble  with  the  government  at  Washington  for 
inefficiency  in  effecting  their  removal. 

"That  Father  Baraga  was  considered  a  serious  obstacle 
to  the  personal  interests  and  to  the  official  task  c^  the 
United  States  Indian  agent,  however,  is  beyond  any  ques- 
tion, for  it  is  proved  by  the  edict  of  the  latter  functionary, 
that  the  Catholic  missionary  should  leave  the  reservation 
for  the  alleged  reason  that  he  Avas  disturbing  the  peaceful 
status  of  its  Indians,  and  that  he  would  thwart  in  all  prob- 
ability, to  some  extent  at  least,  the  plans  of  the  government 
for  their  removal.  Father  Baraga  opposed  this  edict. 
Notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  Bishops  Rese  and  Purcell, 


i 

1 

! 

; 

(':  i 

: 

i 

il. 


i 


I 


1^ 


N 


Hi 


170 


BT.    REV.   FBEDEUIC   BABAQA. 


n^wn 


and  the  intervention  of  Stevens  T.  Mason,  tlie  youthful 
governor  of  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  the  Indian  Depart- 
ment at  Washington  sustained  the  action  of  the  Indian 
agent  at  the  Grand  Kiver  reservation,  and  Father  Baraga 
was  forced  to  leave  the  scene  of  his  successful  missionary 
works.  The  agent  then  accomplished  the  conditions  of 
the  treatv  of  Fort  Dearborn,  and  the  Ottawas  were  re- 
moved  to  the  new  reservation  west  of  the  Mississippi." 

During  the  rest  of  the  winter  of  1834-35  F.  Baraga 
labored  in  a  small  French  mission  not  far  from  Detroit. 
While  there  he  received  from  his  kind  friends  and  well- 
wishers  in  Austria  a  box  of  church  articles  and  devotionals. 
This  timely  gift  pleased  him  very  much,  as  he  could  use 
them  in  the  establishment  of  his  new  mission,  La  Pointe, 
where  such  things  were  much  needed.  He  mentions  some 
of  the  articles  received :  Four  large  beautiful  candlesticks, 
a  very  beautiful  missal  and  nice  vestments,  etc.  He  re- 
marks that  the  cathedrai  in  Detroit  did  not  have  as  beau- 
tiful candlesticks  nor  missal  as  he  had  received  for  his  in- 
tended mission. 

In  a  letter  dated  Detroit,  March  13th,  1835,  he  gives 
expression  to  his  longing  desire  to  go  to  his  new  field  of 
labor.     He  writes : 

"It  appears  strange  to  me  to  be  in  a  congregation  of 
whites.  I  there  live  in  peace  and  am  much  more  comfort- 
able than  among  my  Indians.  But  I  feel  like  a  fish 
thrown  on  dry  land.  The  Indian  mission  is  my  life. 
Now,  having  learned  the  language  tolerably  well,  and  be- 
ing in  hopes  that  I  will  perfect  myself  in  it  still  more,  I 
am  firmly  resolved  to  spend  the  remainder  of  my  life  in 
the  Indian  mission,  if  it  is  the  will  of  God.  I  am  longing 
for  the  moment  of  my  departure  for  Lake  Superior. 
Many,  I  hope,  will  be  converted  there  to  the  religion  of 
Christ,  and  find  in  it  their  eternal  salvation.  Oh,  how 
the  thought  elevates  me !  Would  that  I  had  wings  to  fly 
over  our  ice-Ix)und  lakes,  so  as  to  be  sooner  among  the 


i  '(■ 


GOES   TO   LA   POINTE,  WIS. 


171 


pagans  !  But  what  did  I  say  ?  Many  will  be  converted  I 
Oh,  no !  If  only  one  or  two  were  converted  and  saved,  it 
would  be  worth  the  while  to  go  there  and  preach  the  Gos- 
pel !  But  God  in  His  infinite  goodness  gives  us  more  than 
we  expect.  Certainly,  my  dear  benefactors,  the  newly 
converted  Indians  will  thank  you  on  the  day  of  judgment 
for  having  contributed  so  much  towards  their  conversion 
and  salvation.  In  conclusion,  I  recommend  myself  and 
my  future  mission  to  the  fervent  prayers  of  all  the  pious 
members  and  benefactors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society." 


1 


I 


it, 


\ 


ii: 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

r.  BARAGA  ARRIVES  AT  LA  POINTE^  WIS. INCIDENTS  OF  THE 

JOURNEY HE  BUILDS  HIS  FIRST  CHURCH. 


■« 


'!% 


.  s-v 

I? 


We  will  let  our  zealous  missioner  himself  relate  the 
particulars  of  his  journey  to  his  new  mission  towards  the 
western  end  of  Lake  Superior.  His  letter  is  dated  La 
Pointe,  Au^ist  9th,  1835. 

"After  a  long  journey,  often  interrupted  through  want 
of  opportunity,  I  finally  arr  ved,  on  the  27th  of  July 
(1835),  at  the  place  where  I  intend,  with  the  help  of  God, 
to  estahli-^ii  a  new  mission.  This  place  is  an  Indian  vil- 
lage, in  which,  from  time  to  time,  also  Canadian  traders 
reside,  who  traffic  with  the  Indians.  It  is  situated  on  a 
very  heautiful  island,  near  the  southern  shore  of  the  im- 
mense, large  lake,  Superior.  This  lake  is  the  largest  in- 
land sea  of  the  world,  with  the  exception  of  the  Caspian 
Sea.  It  is  four  hundred  and  twenty  American  miles  long 
and  one  hundred  and  seventy  miles  wide,  and  lies  six  hun- 
dred and  thirty  feet  above  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  Its  depth 
is  in  many  places  literally  unfathomable.  English  engi- 
neers have  attempted  to  measure  its  depth,  but  in  many 
places  they  could  find  no  bottom. 

"The  place,  where  I  now  reside,  is  called  La  Pointe. 
It  is  740  miles  from  Detroit  and  is  situated  considerably 
towards  the  north.  I  traveled  on  this  lake  in  the  month 
of  July,  the  hottest  month,  and  yet  some  mornings  it  was 
so  cold  on  the  water  that  I  was  obliged  to  put  on  my  coat 
over  my  cassock  and  envelope  myself  in  my  cloak,  not  to 


ARRIVAL   AT    LA   POINTE. 


173 


ite. 

>iy 

ith 

ras 

>at 

to 


take  cold.  On  the  7th  of  July  ico  of  the  thicknoss  of  the 
back  of  a  knife  was  found  along  the  shore  at  the  mouth  of 
Lake  Superior.  Xow,  however,  in  August  wo  have  very 
hot  days ;  but  the  winter  is  said  to  be  very  severe  and  long 
here. 

**I  left  Detroit  ab(mt  noon  the  8th  of  Juno,  and  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  lOth  I  arrived  at  ]\raekinac, 
although  those  two  places  are  over  300  miles  apart;  so 
quick  do  steamers  sail  in  this  c  untry.  In  Mackinac  I 
remained  several  days  and  us'^d  the  opportunity  to  pay  a 
visit  to  the  Indians  at  Arbro  Croche.  They  were  very 
much  pleased  to  see  me  again.  They  wished  very  much 
to  keep  me  in  their  mission,  for  Rev.  Father  Simon  Siin- 
derl  had  left  Arbro  Croche  in  the  beginning  of  June,  and 
is  now  in  Ohio,  where  these  Fathers  intend  to  establish  a 
house  of  their  Order.  I  represented  to  the  good  Indians 
that  their  brethren  at  Lake  Superior,  who  had  never  yet 
seen  a  pric  3t,  were  in  greater  need  of  spiritual  help  than 
they,  and  that  certainly  another  missionary  would  soon 
come  to  Arbre  Croche.     This  quieted  them  a  little. 

"I  returned  then  to  Mackinac  and  waited  there  for 
Bishop  Rese.  lie  was  so  busy  at  Detroit  that  he  could  not 
come.  lie  wrote  that  he  could  not  come  to  Mackinac  be^ 
fore  the  beginning  of  August.  So  I  continued  my  jour- 
ney, and  arrived  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie  on  the  4th  of  July. 
It  is  there  that  the  saintly  and  zealous  missionary.  Father 
Francis  HJitscher,  of  the  Congregation  of  the  Most  Holy 
Redeemer,  is  stationed.  But  the  very  day  I  arrived  at 
Saiilt  Ste.  Marie  he  departed  to  go  to  Ohio.  He  did  not 
know  whether  or  not  he  would  return  to  the  Sault.  On 
the  10th  of  July  I  left  the  Sault  on  a  trading  vessel,  and 
after  a  tedious  voyage  of  eighteen  days  arrived  at  La 
Pointe,  where  the  good  people  received  me  with  exceeding 
great  joy.  For  many  years  they  had  longed  for  a  priest 
and  had  urgently  requested  that  one  might  be  sent  to  them. 
However,  on  account  of  the  sad  want  of  priests  in  our  poor 


; 


ill 


.  (i 


1 


\ 


i  1 


174 


RT.   IIEV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


n 


■ir 


diocese,  iiotliing  thus  far  could  be  done  in  the  matter. 
Their  joy,  tliereforo,  was  uuspeakablc  uhen  they  saw  a 
priest  coming'  to  tlieir  |dacc'. 

"Tnily  the  want  of  ])riosts  in  our  diocese  is  sad. 
Would  that  zealous  ])riest8  in  my  fatherland  resolve  to 
como  to  this  wilderness  to  rescue  from  eternal  ruin  the 
poor  pagans  who  live  scattered  in  this  country,  all  of  whom 
it  is  impossible  for  one  priest  to  attend.  Would  it  not  pay 
to  work  and  suffer  much  in  order  to  save  even  but  one  soul 
and  make  it  forever  happy  !  But  here  souls  are  saved  not 
by  one  or  two,  but  by  hundreds.  Every  priest  that  would 
come  here  would  infallibly,  with  the  help  of  God,  save 
hundreds,  were  he  to  have  even  but  a  little  persevering 
missionary  zeal. 

"From  the  Sault  to  La  Pointe  is  considered  to  be  330 
American  miles,  and  my  nearest  neighbor  priest  is  now  so 
far  distant.  When  I  came  here  and  noticed  the  good  feel- 
ing of  my  people  I  immediately  began  to  encourage  them 
to  commence  the  building  of  a  church.  They  started  in 
with  such  zeal  that  in  seven  days  they  had  finished  it  so 
far  that  I  could  bless  it  on  the  9th  of  August  (1835),  and 
say  Mass  in  it.  I  dedicated  this  little  church  to  God  under 
the  patronage  of  St.  Joseph,  this  powerful  intercessor  with 
God.  The  building  is  strong  and  durable,  although  con- 
structed of  hewn  logs  according  to  the  American  style  of 
building.  It  is  large  enough  for  the  people  here,  being 
50x20  feet  and  18  feet  high,  with  a  pretty  high  steeple, 
wherein  a  small  bell  hangs,  which  was  cast  in  Detroit. 

"The  number  of  my  catechumens  is  quite  considerable. 
All  ardently  long  for  Baptism,  which  they  will  receive  as 
soon  as  they  shall  have  been  more  fully  instructed.  On 
the  2d  of  August  I  baptized  twenty-five  Indians  of  those 
more  fully  instructed,  and  who  had  previously  gained  some 
knowledge  of  religion ;  I  likewise  baptized  some  children. 
Between  the  3d  and  9th  of  August  twenty-five  others  re- 
ceived holy  Baptism. 


K  i 


BUILDB   HIS    FIRST   CHURCH. 


175 


''This  weok  thcv  will  \x'g\n  the  building  of  my  house, 
in  which  a  large  room  will  be  partitioned  off  for  a  school. 
I  am  very  contented  and  cannot  sufficiently  thank  Gcxl  that 
everything  goes  so  nnex[)ectedly  well  in  the  establishing  of 
this  mission,  though  I  am  now  wholly  in  want  of  all  earthly 
resources.  After  di  "raying  the  expenses  of  my  journey 
hither,  I  have  but  three  dollars  left.  Our  Rev.  Bishop 
could  not  give  me  more,  for  he  is  so  heavily  in  debt  for  the 
cathedral-church  in  Detroit  and  for  the  church  in  Green 
Bay,  and  has  to  make  so  many  new  outlays  to  properly 
equip  his  school  and  provide  for  other  necessary  institu- 
tions in  Detroit  with  what  they  need,  that  he  expends  all 
the  money  he  gets  for  these  purposes.  Had  I  not  found 
the  peojde  so  good  here  I  would  not  have  been  able  to  begin 
anything.  However,  I  see  that  this  cannot  continue  so  on 
the  long  nm.  The  soil  here  is  poor.  The  climate  is  not 
favorable  to  agriculture.  The  necessary  clothing,  which 
they  procure  from  Canadian  traders  in  bai-tering  their 
peltries,  is  exceedingly  dear,  for  it  has  to  be  brought 
hither  from  such  a  great  distance. 

"It  grieves  my  heart  to  see  their  children  running 
around  naked.  Their  parents  would  gladly  clothe  them, 
if  they  had  the  means.  Aow  much  would  it  not  recom- 
mend the  missionary  and  his  religion,  could  he  but  clothe 
these  poor  creatures  a  little !  O  how  gladly  would  I  do 
it  if  I  could !  At  Grand  River  I  have  done  so,  and  like- 
wise at  Arbre  Croche,  because  I  was  supplied  Avith  suffi- 
cient means,  but  now  I  have  nothing. 

"Ninety  miles  from  here  is  another  Indian  village, 
called  Fond  du  Lac,  where  there  are  also  many  Indians, 
who  desire  to  embrace  the  Catholic  religion.  They  heard 
from  a  pious  fur-trader  of  the  religion  and  the  priest. 
They  wish  very  much  to  see  one  in  their  place.  As  soon 
as  I  shall  have  transacted  the  more  urgent  mission  affairs 
here,  I  will  go  there,  please  God,  and  spend  a  couple  of 
weeks  with  those  good  Indians  in  order  to  receive  them 


M 


c  < 


^1 


ii  i*! 


^ 


li 


176 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIO   BARAOA. 


'i 


by  faith  and  Baptism  into  the  number  of  the  faithful  sheep 
of  Christ.  I  am  told  that  in  the  neighborhood  of  Fond  du 
Lac  thoro  a^o  nuiny  otlior  Indians,  who  havo  often  made 
the  remark  that  they,  too,  wouhi  embrace  tho  Christian 
religion  when  a  priest  would  be  stationed  in  Fond  du  Lac 
to  teach  religion  to  them  and  their  children.  jVIoreover, 
in  the  interior  towards  the  northwest  there  are  other  large 
lakes,  where  there  are  a  groat  many  Indians,  who  are  still 
walking  on  tho  road  to  eternal  perdition.  Alas,  is  it  not 
awfully  sad  to  see  so  many  souls  go  to  eternal  perdition 
through  want  of  priests !  Ah,  why  do  not  some  Austrian 
priests  make  up  their  minds  to  come  to  the  assistance  of 
these  poor  pagans !  Would  to  God  that  some  would  come 
to  me ;  I  would  certainly  get  them  good  places.  The  want 
of  linguistic  knowledge  should  not  deter  them  from  com- 
ing here.  They  would  soon  learn  the  languages.  Let  us 
pray  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  that  Ho  may  send  laborers 
into  His  vineyard !" 


r 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 


FATHER   BAKAOA's    FIUST    VISIT    TO   FOND   DU    LAC    (mINN.) 


In  his  second  letter  to  the  Leopohline  Society,  drted 
La  Pointe,  September  28th,  1835,  he  remarks  that  since 
his  arrival  ho  had  experienced  great  consolation  and  much 
joy,  but  also  many  hardships  and  adversities.  The  latter 
are  unavoidable  in  the  establishment  of  new  missions  in 
distant  and  wild  countries.  Still,  the  consolations  and 
Bpintual  joys  of  the  true  missionary  far  outweigh  the 
hardships  he  endures.  These  difficulties  are  due  partly 
to  the  nature  of  the  country  in  which  he  labors — heat,  cold, 
bad  roads,  unhealthiness  of  climate,  etc.  They  are  also 
due  in  part  to  the  opposition  he  is  sure  to  meet  with  on  the 
part  of  evil-minded  people,  such  as  are  found  everywhere. 
However,  the  conversion  of  a  single  pagan  inspires  so  much 
consolation  that  the  missionary  readily  forgets  all  his  trials 
and  hardships.  Baraga  remarks:  '''Truly  this  is  a 
dreary  country.  As  early  as  the  22d  of  September  we 
saw  the  snow-flakes  falling  and  for  several  weeks  past 
rooms  are  being  heated." 

Since  the  9th  of  August  Father  Baraga  had  a  great 
number  of  Baptisms,  mostly  of  adults.  In  order  to  make 
those  holy  acts  more  solemn  and  impressive,  the  missionary 
generally  baptized  only  on  Sundays.  Hence  he  had  quite 
a  number  of  Baptisms.  During  the  month  of  August,  the 
first  month  he  spent  in  La  Pointe,  he  christened  eighty-six 
Indians,  and  during  September,  sixty-two. 

As  the  good  Indians  of  Fond  du  Lac  were  eagerly  ask- 
ing for  a  priest,  F.  Baraga  went  there  in  September.  As 
soon  as  he  arrived  at  the  village  he  was  most  agreeably  sur- 


m 


178 


RT.   IlEV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


1 1' 


i 

1! 


i 


1 


:|f 


0* 


])risc'<]  to  iiiul  a  largo  iiiunWr  of  Tiuliaus  aHSoniblod  at  the 
trader's  liousc.  As  soon  as  ho  ontorod,  tlioy  all  kuolt  down 
and  askod  for  tho  ])riostly  Mossiiijij,  whioh  tho  pious  and 
toiidt>r-lioartod  niissionarv  gavo  llioni  with  a  heart  full  of 
oinotion  and  joy.  llo  thanked  repeatedly  tho  good  fur- 
trader  f(M*  the  great  intcM'ost  ho  had  taken  in  the  conversion 
of  those  \H)or  pagans.  The  name  of  this  trader,  who  was 
a  French-C^anadian,  Avas  Pierre  (\)tt6.  He  had  Iwon  trad- 
ing with  th(>  Indians  for  ujnvards  of  thirty  years,  and  could 
speak  tluMr  language  tluontly. 

Through  a  merciful  arrangement  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence a  copy  of  Paraga's  Ottawa  j>rayer-lH>ok,  published 
in  1S32,  had  fallen  into  his  hands.  He  began  now  to  in- 
vito tlio  Indians  of  his  place  to  come  to  his  house  and  then 
he  used  to  sing  for  them  various  Indian  hvmns  to  be  found 
in  the  ])rayer-lHX)k.  A  groat  numln'r  of  these  hymns  are 
composed  according  to  well-known  French  airs.  The  In- 
dians found  the  singing  so  nice  and  pleasant  that  they  used 
to  come  to  his  house  every  evening.  They  would  often 
stay  till  midnight,  nay,  at  times  even  till  daybreak,  sing^ 
ing  with  Mr.  Cotte.  When  ho  noticed  their  groat  zeal  he 
did  not  confine  himself  to  singing  spiritual  hymns,  but 
also  instructcxl  them  in  the  cato<'hism.  He  also  read  to 
thorn  the  moniing  and  evening  prayers,  wliich  the  Indians 
soon  learned  by  heart.  When  F.  Baraga  came,  ho  found 
many  of  the  Indians  very  much  inclined  to  religion  and 
well  prepared  fur  Baptism.  Ho  baptized  twenty-one  at 
Fond  du  Lac  on  the  Gth  of  September,  and  thirty  at  La 
Pointe  on  tho  0th  of  the  same  month.     Baraga  says : 

"God  be  thanked  a  thousand  times !  A  considerable 
number  of  jiagans  have  already  been  received  into  the 
lx>som  of  the  clnirch,  namely,  one  himdre<I  and  forty-eight. 
Goti  grant  that  all,  or  at  least  the  gro^itor  number  of  these 
new  converts,  may  go  to  heaven !  What  a  consolation  for 
me  on  the  day  of  judgment!'* 

Kev.  Joseph  Prost,  Redemptorist,  under  date  of  the 


k 

1 


FIRBT   VISIT   TG   FOND   Dli    LAC. 


179 


12th  of  N(>v('nil»('r,  181)5,  wrote  to  the  lx'ojK)l(.line  Society 
about  F.  liarugsi : 

**l  hnve  read  a  letter  of  Fatlier  Baraga  to  Kt.  Kev. 
Bishoj)  Ke^e,  in  wliicli  lie  eoniplains  that  his  winter  clothes 
which  had  been  sent  him  had  not  arrived,  and  that  he  was 
exposed  to  all  the  rigors  of  a  northern  winter  in  his  light 
summer  clothes.  This  indefatigable  apostle  now  teaches 
the  Indians  without  an  interpreter.  It  is  truly  edifying 
to  read  his  hitters  to  the  Rt.  liev.  Bishop,  for  they  charac- 
terize a  man  of  the  strictest  obedience  to  his  superior." 

Truly  this  humble,  self-sacrificing,  obedient  priest  can 
serve  as  a  model  to  all  members  of  religious  orders  engaged 
in  the  Indian  mission-field.  It  was  in  La  Pointe  that  he 
l)egan  the  practice,  and  ever  afterwards  kept  up,  of  rising 
at  three  in  the  morning  during  summer,  and  at  four  dur- 
ing winter,  and  spend  three  consecutive  hours  in  medita- 
tion and  prayer.  This  we  learn  from  a  casual  entry  in  his 
journal  kept  when  Bishop.  No  wonder  that  a  man  so 
highly  gifted  with  the  gift  of  prayer  and  of  such  heroic 
virtues  should  b(K?ome  the  instrument  of  God  for  the  con- 
version and  salvation  of  innumerable  souls. 


I 


^ 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


Baraga's  labors  at  la  pointe — (Continued). 


lii'S' 


Between  September  28tli  and  December  28th,  F. 
Baraga  baptized  thirty-three  in  La  Pointe,  mostly  adults. 
One  of  his  converts  was  a  venerable  old  woman  of  one  hun- 
dred years.  From  an  old  French-Canadian,  who  had  been 
on  the  island  fifty-three  years,  her  age  could  approximately 
be  inferred,  as  she  remembered  things  that  had  occurred 
about  a  century  before.  The  poor  old  woman  felt  exceed- 
ingly happy  when  she  was  baptized.  Three  of  her  grand- 
children were  baptized  ^\dth  her.  Her  youngest  grand- 
child, a  man  of  forty  years,  was  baptized  on  Christmas 
day.  On  that  great  holy  day  Baraga  baptized  twenty 
adult  pagans  and  two  children.  Several  entire  families 
were  baptized  that  day. 

Every  evening,  for  a  whole  month,  during  the  cold 
winter  weather,  he  walked  a  distance  of  three  miles  to 
where  they  lived,  to  prepare  these  good  Indians  for  the 
grace  of  Baptism,  for  in  the  day  time  they  were  away  fish- 
ing or  trapping.  These  instructions  used  to  last  a  long 
time  till  late  at  night,  so  that  it  was  always  very  late  be- 
fore he  returned  to  his  modest  dwelling.  God  rewarded 
His  zealous  servant.  On  Christmas  day  he  baptized  a 
large  number  of  adults,  as  above  mentioned.  From  July 
27th,  the  day  of  his  arrival,  up  to  Dec.  28th — that  is, 
within  five  months,  he  baptized  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
four  persons. 

During  the  five  months  that  had  elapsed  since  the 
founding  of  the  mission,  only  one  had  died — a  child  of  two 
years.     This    seeminly    unimportant    circumstance    may 


H 


LABORS  AT   LA   POINTE. 


181 


ay 


have  aided  him  greatly  in  his  work  of  converting.  Had 
many  died  soon  after  Baptism,  the  people,  who  are  natur- 
ally superstitions,  would  have  most  likely  attributed  it  to 
that  holy  Sacrament,  as  they  did  in  former  times,  when 
the  Jesuits  were  laboring  in  the  Northwest. 

In  a  letter  written  about  that  time  he  says : 

"I  feel  grieved  that  I  must  continue  this  mission  en- 
tirely alone,  and  that,  moreover,  I  have  not  a  cent  of  my 
own.  A  school  would  be  vei*;^^  useful  in  this  mission,  but 
it  is  simply  impossible  for  me  to  do  the  two  things — that 
is,  keep  school  and  properly  perfonn  my  numerous  mis- 
sionary duties  and  visit  the  sick.  For  often  I  am  in  the 
huts  of  the  Indians  all  day,  where  I  always  find  something 
useful  to  do.  I  must  necessarily  omit  one  or  the  other. 
In  this  case  I  rather  omit  keeping  school  than  attending 
the  mission,  for,  properly  speaking,  I  am  a  missionary 
and  not  a  schoolmaster.  Of  course,  I  would  gladly  do 
both,  if  possible.  That  I  have  no  money  at  all  is  also  very 
hard,  for  I  would  gladly  clothe,  at  least  a  little,  the  poor 
Indian  children,  who  even  now  run  about  half-naked  in 
winter,  but  I  cannot  give  them  a  stitch  of  clothing.  That 
is  hard ;  but  in  the  name  of  God  let  it  be  so  for  the  first 
year.  I  hope  hereafter  to  get  a  teacher  and  also  some 
assistance." 

The  winter  of  1835-36  was  very  long  and  severe.  As 
late  as  June  7th  large  blocks  of  ice  were  to  be  seen  along 
the  lake  shore.  Time,  however,  slipped  by  pleasantly, 
partly  in  instructing  his  new  converts,  partly  in  compos- 
ing literary  works  for  the  press.  In  a  letter,  dated  La 
Pointe,  June  17th,  1836,  he  mentions  the  following  works, 
on  which  he  had  been  laboring  during  his  first  year's  stay 
on  the  island,  namelv : 

1.  A  work  in  the  Slavonian  language. 

2.  A  German  work,  entitled,   "History,   Character, 


(I 


i  !] 


182 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


k 


Life  and  Manners  of  the  Xorth  American  Indians."  (This 
work  was  intended  for  his  generous  benefactors  of  the 
Leopoldine  Society.) 

3.  A  prayer-book  in  the  Chippewa  language. 

4.  The  life  of  Jesus,  also  in  Chippewa. 

On  the  26th  of  May,  1836,  he  again  went  by  boat  to 
Fond  du  Lac  and  remained  there  two  weeks.  He  found 
his  converts  in  the  very  best  disposition.  He  was  in  hopes 
they  would  obtain  a  resident  priest,  for  Rev.  Francis 
Pierz,  who  had  intended  to  come  to  La  Pointe  the  previous 
fall,  but  had  been  prevented  from  doing  so,  and  had  win- 
tered at  Arbre  Croche,  was  intended  for  Fond  du  Lac. 
The  Indians  there  had  heard  of  this  arrangement  and 
awaited  F.  Pierz  with  great  desire.  This,  however,  was 
never  to  be,  for  "man  proposes,  but  God  disposes." 

Through  the  zealous  labors  of  good  Pierre  Cotte  four- 
teen pagans  were  prepared  for  Baptism.  This  pious 
trader  assembled  them  at  his  house  every  Sunday  during 
the  past  winter  and  instructed  them.  F.  Baraga  com- 
pleted their  instruction  and  baptized  them.  One  of  the 
converts  was  a  head-chief,  who,  with  his  whole  family,  em- 
braced our  holy  faith.  The  day  before  Baraga's  departure 
the  head-chief  of  the  i'ond  du  Lac  band  of  Indians  came 
to  him  with  several  men  and  begged  of  him  not  to  leave, 
but  to  stay  with  them  and  let  some  other  priest  take  charge 
of  La  Pointe.  He  answered  that  it  would  please  him  very 
much  to  do  as  they  requested,  but  that  he  had  often  prom- 
ised the  good  people  of  La  Pointe  to  live  and  die  with 
them,  if  such  should  be  the  will  of  God.  Hence  it  was  not 
optional  with  him  to  leave  them  and  go  to  another  mission. 
At  the  same  time  he  promised  to  do  his  best  to  procure 
them  a  resident  priest.  At  this  all  were  very  much  re- 
joiced. They  showed  the  place  where  they  ir  tended  to 
build  a  church  and  house  for  the  priest. 

Alas,  the  hopes  of  these  fervent  neophytes  were  never 


LABORS   AT   LA   POINTS. 


183 


L3 

le 


to  be  realized.  Fond  du  Lac  has  ever  remained  a  mere 
mission.  During  the  last  fifty  years  it  has  been,  attended 
by  Indian  missionaries  from  La  Pointe,  Superior,  Bay- 
field, and  now,  Duluth.  There  are  but  a  handful  of  In- 
dian half-breeds  there  now.  Most  of  them  have  removed 
to  Papashkominitigong  and  other  places. 

At  La  Pointe  the  good  work  kept  going  on.  Twenty- 
eight  converts  were  received  into  the  church,  among  them 
a  head-chief,  whose  conversion  made  a  deep  impression  on 
his  pagan  countrymen.  He  became  a  model  of  virtue  and 
was  zealous  in  the  cause  of  religion.  In  the  early  part 
of  June  F.  Baraga  received  a  box  of  vestments  and  other 
church  articles,  as  also  a  great  quantity  of  rosaries,  medals, 
pictures,  scapulars,  etc.,  for  his  new  church  and  his  dear 
Indians,  from  the  Leopoldine  Society. 


n 

i 

ii 


iii^i 


CHAPTEK  XXIX. 


F.  BARAGA  GOES  TO  EUROPE HE  IS  RECEIVED  EVERYWHERE 

WITH  GREAT  DISTINCTION LECTURES  ON  INDIAN  MIS- 
SIONS   RETURNS      TO      LA     POINTE FINISHES      HIS 

CHURCH FIRST    CONFIRMATION    IN    I^    POINTE     BY 

BISHOP  RESE  IN  1838. 


The  nnmber  of  converts  in  La  Pointe  kept  increasing. 
During  the  first  year  of  his  stay  he  baptized  255  persons, 
the  far  greater  nnmber  being  adults.  The  little  church 
hastily  erected  Avithin  a  week  after  his  arrival,  and  which 
was  dedicated  to  St.  Joseph,  was  now  too  small  to  hold  the 
congregation,  and  many  were  obliged  to  stand  outside  dur- 
ing divine  service.  Then  he  resolved  to  enlarge  it  by 
bulding  an  addition.  To  accomplish  this  he  determined 
to  go  to  Europe  to  collect  the  necessary  funds  and  get  his 
Chippewa  prayerbook  printed. 

He  left  La  Pointe  on  the  29th  of  September,  1836. 
He  first  went  to  Paris  and  remained  there  for  some  weeks 
to  superintend  the  printing  of  his  prayerbook.  This  was 
the  first  edition  of  the  Chippewa  "Anamie  Masinaigan 
Prayerbook,"  which  has  since  been  reprinted  a  number  of 
times.  But  his  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  souls  gave  him 
no  rest.  During  Lent  he  preached  in  German  to  his 
countrymen  in  Paris,  a  great  number  residing  in  the 
French  capital.  There  he  also  found  his  widowed  sister, 
Antonia  de  HoefFern,  who  had  gone  to  Paris  to  acquire  the 
necessary  proficiency  in  Fionch,  as  she  intended  to  devote 
herself  to  the  service  of  God  in  America  by  teaching  school. 
She  came  with  her  saintlv  brother  to  La  Pointe,  but  after 


GOES   TO   EUROPE —IIECEIVED   WITH    HONORS. 


185 


f 


»> 


Spending  two  years  there  her  he.alth  failed  and  she  was 
obliged  to  return  to  her  fatherland."^ 

F.  Baraga  then  visited  his  native  land^  and  preached 
at  Laibach  and  other  places  to  great  numbers  of  people 
who  flocked  together  from  all  parts  of  the  country  to  see 
and  hear  him.  ]Ie  preached  in  lx)th  Slavonian  and  Grer- 
man,  giving  an  account  of  his  missionary  life  among  the 
Indians  and  their  wavs  and  customs.  He  then  went  to 
Vienna  and  gave  to  the  directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society 
an  account  of  his  labors  and  of  the  necessities  of  his  mis- 
sion. Ho  received  the  necessary  funds  to  complete  his 
church  and  pastoral  residence.  On  the  8th  of  October, 
1837,  he  returned  to  La  Pointe  and  after  many  labors  and 
trials  he  finished  the  church  and  annexed  prists'  house  in 
the  month  of  August,  1838.  On  the  2d  of  September  of 
the  last  named  year  the  church  was  dedicated  to  God  under 
the  name  of  St.  Joseph.  On  the  7th  of  the  same  month 
Bishop  Rese  came  to  this  mission  for  the  first  time,  and 
on  the  9th  of  September,  1838,  confirmed  one  hundred 
and  twelve  converts  and  Canadians. 

Speaking  of  his  countryman,  F.  Baraga,  Rev.  Fr. 
Pierz  says : 

"Much  ffood  has  alreadv  been  done  for  the  Catholic 
religion,  and  there  is  goo<l  reason  to  hope  for  more,  since 
several  zealous  missionaries  have  learned  the  Indian  lan- 
guage and  thus  they  can  work  upon  the  Indian  directly, 
without  interpreter,  and  lay  the  foundation  of  an  Indian 
literature. 

"Herein  F.  Baraga  distinguishes  himself  before  all 


m 


1 


*See  appendix. 

tF.  Baraga  preached  at  Laibach  in  the  Cathedral  on  the  second 
Sunday  after  Easter,  April  19th,  1837.  He  then  went  to  Dobernig, 
his  native  town,  and  knelt  almost  a  whole  hour  at  the  baptismal 
font  in  the  Church  of  St.  George,  where  he  had  been  baptized,  renew- 
ing with  the  greatest  fervor  his  baptismal  vows  in  the  very  place 
"where  forty  years  before  he  had  received  the  Sacrament  of  regenera- 
tion. Would  that  all  Christians  appreciated  in  like  manner  the 
great  grace  of  Baptism! 


186 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA, 


r  ti 


l^illri 


others,  of  whom  I  can  justly  testify  to  the  honor  of  Aus- 
tria and  his  fatherland,  Krain,  that  Providence  has  chosen 
him  as  a  perfect  model  for  all  missionaries.  For  in  this 
men  of  God  shine  forth  profound  and  multifarious  learn- 
ing, apostolic  piety,  united  to  an  unsatiable  zeal  for  the 
conversion  of  souls,  and  such  wisdom  that  not  only  all 
Catholics,  but  even  Protestants  and  pagans  give  him  mer- 
ited praise.  The  Lord's  blessing  accompanied  his  untir- 
ing labors  so  visibly  in  Arbre  Croche,  Grand  River,  St. 
Clair,  and  La  Pointe,  that  his  numerous  converts  are  the 
best  Christians  in  America. 

"In  consideration  of  his  great  merits,  our  Rt.  Rev. 
Bishop  has  appointed  him  his  Secretary  and  Vicar-gen- 
eral. For  promoting  the  cause  of  virtue  and  religion  he 
deserves  to  be  placed  on  the  "candelabrum  to  serve  as  a 
light  unto  many  others.'' 

The  enlarging  of  his  church,  as  he  himself  declares  in 
the  Baptismal  Record,  now  in  Bayfield,  cost  him  a  vast 
amount  of  care  and  labor.  He  was  obliged  to  superintend 
the  work  personally.  This  took  a  great  deal  of  his  pre- 
'cious  time.  He  had  to  show  his  carpenters  what  to  do 
and  how  to  do  it.  It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  Indians, 
when  left  to  themselves,  soon  grow  weary  and  leave.  They 
want  some  one  to  stand  by  theia,  so  to  say,  all  day  long, 
to  show  them  their  work,  how  it  is  to  be  done,  and  to 
animate  them  to  exertion,  for  they  are  naturally  indolent 
and  disinclined  to  steady  work.  Every  Indian  missionary 
will  realize  what  labor,  care  and  expense  good  Father 
Baraga  must  have  had  to  undergo  in  order  to  enlarge  and 
complete  his  church.  In  addition  to  this  he  ^  id  a  large 
congregation  of  Indians,  half-breeds,  and  whites  to  attend, 
to  hear  the  numerous  Confessions  of  his  fervent  neophytes 
and  others,  to  instruct  those  ignorant,  though  good  people 
in  the  rudiments  of  faith,  to  prepare  his  sermons  in  Chip- 
pewa and  French,  to  teach  catechism,  attend  sick-calls, 
visit  the  pagans  in  their  wigwams,  near  and  far,  to  attend 


FOUNDINQ   OF  GRAND   POBTAOE    MISSION. 


187 


his  distant  missions ;  tuid  besides  all  this  to  personally 
superintend  the  work  l>eing  done  on  the  church.  All  this 
took  up  all  his  time  during  the  day  and  often  a  great  part 
of  the  night. 

The  interior  was  decorated  with  eighteen  beautiful  oil- 
paintings,  some  of  which  are  yet  to  be  seen  in  the  present 
La  Pointo  church  and  one  in  Bayfield.  The  beautiful  and 
large  oil-painting  over  the  high  altar  in  La  Pointe  church, 
representing  the  Holy  Family  at  work,  was  painted  in  Lai- 
bach  in  1837,  and  was  intended  to  remind  the  Indians  of 
the  great  precept  of  their  Maker:  ''In  the  sweat  of  thy 
brow  thou  shalt  eat  thy  bread."  Speaking  of  this  beauti- 
ful painting,  executed  by  Langus,  in  Laibach,  Father 
Baraga  writes : 

"The  altar-picturo  is  large  and  beautiful,  painted  by 
Langus  in  Laibach.  It  repi*esents  St.  Joseph  working  in 
his  shop.  The  Blessed  Virgin  sits  at  his  side  and  sews, 
and  the  Child  Jesus  is  looking  at  His  foster  father  work- 
ing.  This  picture  is  very  appropriate  for  an  Indian  mis- 
sion church,  for  Indians  are  by  nature  inclined  to  idleness. 
Missionaries  have  to  admonish  them  very  often  to  work, 
and  no  sublimer  pattern  of  industriousness  can  be  pre- 
sented before  their  eyes  than  the  Holy  Family." 

Speaking  of  the  founding  of  the  Grand  Portage  Mis- 
sion F.  Baraga  says : 

"Furthermore  I  have  to  report  that  the  intended  mis- 
sion at  Grand  Portage  (Minnesota),  on  the  northern  shore 
of  Lake  Superior,  is  now  in  its  beginning.  It  makes  very 
agi*eeable  progress.  I  have  mentioned  in  a  former  letter 
that  on  my  return  from  Europe  (in  1837)  I  received  a 
very  friendly  letter  from  the  head  chief  there.  He  de- 
clared in  the  name  of  his  countrj'men  that  they  most  ear- 
nestly desired  to  hear  the  Word  of  God.  I  then  told  F. 
Pierz  to  go  this  summer  to  Grand  Portage,  which  he  did. 
He  found  the  Indians  in  the  very  best  disposition.  They 
had  already  constructed  a  small  bark  chapel,  for  they  con- 


I:  II 


188 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIC  BARAOA. 


i 


I  Hi*' 


ill! 


fidently  awaited  the  coming  of  a  priest  this  summer,  be- 
cause I  had  promised  them  last  fall,  when  I  tvas  there,  that 
I  would  procure  them  a  priest,  who  would  stay  with  them 
and  announce  to  them  the  word  of  God.  He  has  already 
baptized  many,  who  are  all  very  zealous  in  performing 
their  religious  duties.  He  has  also  made  a  missionary 
visit  to  another  place  not  far  from  Grand  Portage,  called 
Fort  William,  where  he  found  the  Indians  in  the  very 
best  disposition  towards  religion." 


In  I  ; 


■t';f;K 


m 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


1:1 


STATE  OF  LA  POINTE  MISSION  DUEING  1839  AND  1840. 
PECULIAR  INDIAN  CUSTOMS  AT  FUNERALS,  MODE  OP 
BURIAL.       INTERESTING    LETTER   OF    FATHER    PIERZ. 


'.!■ 


In  his  letter  to  the  Leopold ine  Society,  dated  Jan.  25th, 
1839,  Baraga  complains  that  he  has  nothing  interesting 
to  write,  as  mostly  all  pagans,  who  had  any  loaning  to 
Christianity,  had  been  converted,  and  the  others  seemed 
detennined  to  close  their  hearts  against  the  call  of  divine 
grace  and  to  persevere  in  their  pagan  superstition.  "Cve- 
diderunt  quotquot  praeordinati  erant  ad  vitam  acternam," 
all  those  believed  who  were  ordained  to  eternal  life." 

St.  Joseph's  Mission  at  La  Pointe  was  fast  assuming 
the  fonn  of  a  well-regulated  parish.  The  church,  still 
located  at  IMiddlefort,  near  the  large  Indian  cemetery,  was 
finished  both  inside  and  out.  It  had  a  nice  altar,  pulpit, 
pews,  and  a  regular  choir,  composed  of  Canadian  and 
Chippewa  singers.  For  many  years  Theophile  Remillard, 
still  alive  at  this  writing  (1896),  aged  83  years,  v.as  head 
singer  in  St.  Joseph's  church ;  he  was  assisted  by  Antoine 
and  Jean  Baptiste  Gaudin  (Gordon)  both  still  alive.  An- 
toine Gaudin  resides  at  present  in  Gordon,  Wis.,  and  is  a 
very  good  practical  Catholic  and  main-stay  of  the  little 
mission  at  his  place.  His  brother,  Jean  Baptiste,  resides 
at  Bayfield,  Wis.,  and  is  also  a  very  good  Catholic,  as 
are  also  Joseph  and  Angeligue  Gaudin,  twins,  brother  and 
sister  of  the  above-named  men. 

We  will  mention  some  of  the  old  settlers  in  La  Pointe 
(1835-43).  Besides  the  above-named  singers  there  were 
at  that  time  on  the  island :    Alexie  I^eveu,  Gros  Cadotte, 


IJ    i 


.■J 


if 
i.' 


1.111 


w 


W' 


;  i 


'15 


\ 


1'^ 

■*■' «    t 


I 

:!■    . 


•I' 

?! 

to 


lUO 


KT.    REV.    FKEDERIO   BARAGA. 


;^^>rlic'l  Cadottc,  Alcxio  Clmrpcuticr,  Charcttc,  ^randfiitlier 
of  CliarU?  Cliarcttc,  of  Odaiiah;  Aiitoinc  Charcttc,  l^iaco 
Kabidoux,  Jean  Ha})tistc  Dcnoiumc,  i'raiu'is  Lainorciix, 
liaptistc  Ci«>^iS('liii,  Francis  l>cllaiif»:cr,  Jiasilc  Jicaulieii, 
John  J)cll,  <;('ncrally  called  Scjuirc  IjcU  ;  Louis  Dufaiilt, 
Ba])tistc  licriault,  Louis  Dufault,  .loscjdi  I )u fault,  Charles 
BcUo  Isle,  Lcgault  (Lcfio),  .lolin  Ji.  J^risctto,  Vincent  Roy- 
Sr.,  Vincent  Koy,  ^vho  died  last  year  in  Superior,  Scraphin 
Lacondi,  Ci(])t.  Angus,  .Michel  Boucher,  Brobaut,  Antoino 
Perinicr,  ^lichael  Jiassinct,  Jlilaire  Genereau,  Megalise, 
Jean  Bap^iste  Lassard,  Robert  Morin,  Antoine  Cournoyer. 

There  were  also  three  ushers  or  cliurch-policemen  to 
keep  order  in  church  and  assist  their  pastor.  F.  Baraga 
had  also  two  grown-up  boys  to  serve  Mass  and  a  sexton, 
everything  in  true  cliurch  style.  All  these  men  were  Can- 
adicin  Frenchmen,  married  to  Indian  women.  Many  of 
the  parishioners,  in  fact,  by  far  the  greatest  number,  were 
very  good  men  and  deserving  of  great  praise  for  their 
fervor  and  piety.  F.  Baraga  had  also  a  neat,  well-built 
house,  built,  of  course,  of  hewn  logs,  for  frame  buildings 
were  very  rare  in  those  days  as  being  too  expensive. 

Adjoining  the  church  was  the  cemeterv',  that  "city  of 
the  dead,"  covered  even  at  present  with  many  lit*le  houses 
built  Indian-fashion  over  the  graves  of  their  dead.  We 
Bee  in  this  mode  of  burial  much  that  shows  their  belief  in 
the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  their  tender  love  and  re- 
gard for  the  dead.  Even  Christian  Indians  adhere  tena- 
ciously to  their  Indian  mode  of  sepulture,  unless  hindered 
by  their  pastor.  They  hate  to  bury  their  dead  deep  in 
the  ground,  preferring  to  have  them  buried  but  slightly 
below  the  surface„  They  generally  put  something  over 
the  coffin,  usually  a  mat,  or  nice  quilt,  to  keep  it  from  get- 
ting wet.  After  the  grave  is  filled  they  will  immediately 
spread  over  it  a  large  piece  of  birch-bark,  as  a  kind  of  tem- 
porary c^>ver  to  keep  the  rain  from  wetting  the  grave.  If 
not  too  poor,  they  will  get  a  neat  little  house,  or  at  least  a 


i': 


y. 


c 


T 
7. 


'-.i 


PECULIAR   INDIAN   CUSTOMS. 


191 


Dice  roof,  built  over  the  grave  at  considerable  expense.  To 
this,  then,  the  Christians  attach  a  cross  to  distinguish  their 
graves  from  those  of  the  pagans.  The  pagan  usually 
plants  a  United  States  flag  or  some  superstitiously  marked 
banner  on  the  grave  of  his  dead.  On  the  whole,  it  can  be 
truly  said  that  they  have  more  regard  for  the  dead  than 
many  whites  have.  The  pagans  used  to  bury  various  ar- 
ticles used  by  the  deceased  during  life,  also  place  tobacco 
or  sugar  on  the  grave,  or  in  the  drawer  made  for  that  pur- 
pose in  the  little  house  built  over  the  grave.  But  these 
customs  are  falling  into  disuse  more  and  more.  A  pecu- 
liar feeling  of  sadness  and  pity  seizes  one  in  passing  a  pa- 
gan gi'ave-yai'd.  They  do  not  seem  to  have  that  aversion  to 
gravo-yards  so  common  to  whites,  for  they  often  build  their 
wigwams  or  houses  close  to  the  graves  of  their  dead.  In 
Bayfield  their  graves  formerly  lay  on  all  sides,  in  front  of 
^he  church,  under  the  priest's  window,  at  the  rear  of  the 
house,  in  short,  everywhere.  Well  does  the  writer  remem- 
ber the  lonely,  queer,  ghostly  feeling  that  crept  over  him 
w^hen,  during  the  first  week  of  his  stay  in  Bayfield,  in  June, 
1878,  he  had  to  sleep  literally  among  the  dead,  without  a 
human  soul  in  the  house.  How^ever,  his  shmibers  were 
not  disturbed  by  any  nocturnal  visitors  from  the  spirit 
world. 

During  the  winter  of  1838-39  F.  Baraga  composed  his 
"Gagikw^e-masinaigan" — ^'Sermon-book,"  which  contains 
the  epistles  and  gospels  of  all  the  Simdays  and  holydays  of 
the  year,  besides  a  short  bible-history  of  the  old  Testament 
and  instructive  extracts  from  the  four  gospels.  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,  epistles  of  St.  Paul  and  other  Apostles.  This 
look  he  intended  to  have  printed  at  Green  Bay,  this  being 
the  nearest  place  where  it  could  be  done.  However  the 
estimated  cost  of  printing  and  binding  was  three  hundred 
dollars.  It  was  no  doubt  for  that  reason  that  he  wrote  to 
the  Leopoldine-Society  to  procure  the  necessary  funds. 
The   "Gagikwe-masinaigan"    now    used   by   our   Indian 


192 


BT.  BEV.   FREDERIC  BABAOi. 


];!' 


IM.^ 


missionaries  was  printed  by  Joseph  A.  Hemann,  Cincin- 
nati, O.,  in  1858. 

F.  Pierz  in  a  letter  dated  La  Pointe,  Wis.,  Julj  2l3t, 
1838,  writes  as  follows  of  Baraga's  labors  on  that  island : 

"La  Pointe  is  a  large  island,  where  fish  are  plentiful, 
at  the  western  end  of  great  Lake  Superior,  480  miles  (  ?) 
from  Sault  Ste  Marie,  my  former  station.  A  large 
trading  company  has  a  branch  store  on  this  island  and  it  is 
therefore  the  rendezvous  of  many  Indians  and  French-Ca- 
nadians, all  of  whom  lived  like  pag'ans  before  Father 
Baraga's  arrival. 

"At  first  this  pious  missionary  had  to  contend  with 
many  difficulties  and  hardships,  but  with  his  customary, 
persevering  energy  and  apostolic  zeal  he  soon  formed  out  of 
these  rude,  wild  barbarians  a  very  large  Christain  con- 
gregation, which  continues  to  grow  daily  through  new 
conversions.  To  his  gi*eat  joy  he  has  completed  his 
beautiful  new  church  and  a  suitable  priest's  house  with  the 
money  he  brought  with  him  from  Europe. 

"lie  teaches  daily  in  the  church  and  in  the  wig^vams  of 
the  Indians.  On  Smiday  he  preaches  five  times  in  three 
or  four  languages.  He  is  very  much  beloved  and  lives 
with  his  happy  flock  like  a  father  with  his  dear  children, 
in  peaceful  contentment  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  beau- 
tiful fruits  of  his  labors  to  his  great  consolation.  He  has 
peculiar  success  and  Goi_  s  visible  blessing  in  converting 
pagans.  In  Arbre  Croche  he  formed  out  of  very  wild 
savages  several  hundreds  of  such  good  Christians,  that  one 
might  propose  them  to  all  Christians  as  models  of  piety. 
At  Grand  River,  in  a  short  time,  he  made  out  of  blind  ido- 
lators  a  truly  pious,  Christian  congregation.  Here  in  La 
Pointe  a  person  is  deeply  moved,  when  he  hears  the  newly 
made  converts  singing  the  praises  of  God  with  their 
priest,  in  their  beautiful  decorated  church,  and  sees  them 
devoutly  adoring  their  Creator  and  Lord.  As  to  his  per- 
sonal virtues  and  rigorous  mode  of  life  I  will  not  expatiate 


{ 


PECULIAR   INDIAN  CUSTOMS. 


193 


upon  thean  in  order  not  to  wound  his  humility.  My  prayer 
is  that  the  Lord  may  preserve  him  for  a  long  time  to  labor 
for  the  salvation  of  the  Indians  and  to  serve  as  a  noble  ex- 
ample to  all  missionaries,  and  that  He  may  bless  all  his 
undertakings* 

"I  also  mention  with  pleasure  the  excellent  Indian 
prayer-book  which  F.  Baraga  composed  and  had  printed 
last  year  at  Paris.  This  interesting  work  was  distributed 
gratuitously  in  all  the  Indian  missions  and  was  every- 
where received  with  much  joy.  It  stirred  up  religious 
life  and  laid  the  foundation  for  Indian  schools.  The 
great  benefit  and  wonderful  success  of  this  work  for 
confirming  the  Christians  and  converting  the  pagans  is 
certainly  highly  consoling  for  the  present  and  future  of 
the  Indians,  who  are  so  desirous  of  instruction. 

"In  the  German  work:  'On  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  Indians,'  printed  at  Laibach,  F.  Baraga  describes 
only  wild  savages  and  their  way  of  living.  He  relates 
their  horrible  cruelties,  as  gleaned  from  the  earliest  his- 
torical accounts,  without,  however,  disclosing  the  traits  of 
goodness  in  the  Indian  character.  The  author,  however, 
admits  that  he  intended  to  speak  in  his  work  only  of  the 
manners  and  customes  of  Indian  pagans  and  idolators,  and 
that  the  description  of  the  manners  and  customs  of  newly 
converted  Christian  Indians  was  to  be  the  subject  of  his 
report  to  the  Bev.  Directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society. 

"As  regards  my  own  personal  experience,  having  had 
many  opportunities  during  my  three  year's  stay  among 
the  ludians  of  several  places  to  watch  them,  pagans  as 
well  as  Christains,  I  can  justly  assert  that  they  are,  as  a 
rule,  phlegmatic,  good-natured,  exceedingly  patient  and 
docile,  and  well  disposed  to  lead  a  good  life.  Even  in  their 
wild,  aboriginal  state,  when  they  are  removed  from  bad. 
scandalous  people,  they  do  not  live  at  all  wickedly  and 
viciously.     They  listen  eagerly  to  the  priest  who  conies  to 


i| 


^1 


I  ^  w 


194 


RT.    BEV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


■  ■  m 


them,  readily  embrace  the  faith  and  allow  themselves  to 
be  soon  transformed  into  good,  steadfast  Christians. 

"But  where  the  poor  Indians  have  been  scandalized 
by  the  great  vices  of  white  Christians,  or  have  been  spoiled 
by   intoxicating  liquor,    and   have   been   sednced   by  the 
enemies  of  religion  and  prejudiced  against  our  holy  faith, 
they  naturally  become  far  harder  to  convert  and  civilize. 
Thievery,  injustice,  or  perfidy  are  found  among  no  nation 
so  seldom  as  among  the  Indians.     Murders  also  are  very 
rare.     Only  when  provoked  to  reprisals,  or  driven  thereto 
through  the  instinct  of  self-preservation,  e.  g.,  in  case  of  a 
deadly  famine  do  they  take  human  life.    A  Catholic  mis- 
sionary nowadays  need  have  no  fear  of  endangering  life 
amongst  the  most  savage  tribes  of  these  people,  because 
owing  to  ancient  traditions  about  the  pious  French  Jesuit 
Fathers,  who  accomplished  so  much  good  in  this  country, 
they  always  show  great  respect  to  priests  and  call  tliem 
reverentlv:       'Mekatewikwanaie    Black    Kobe.'       Hence 
they  adopt  only  that  religion  as  being  genuinely  Catholic, 
w^hich  is  brought  to  them  under  the  Jesuit  soutain  and 
which  they  call:     ^'Wemitigojianamiewin'' — French  reli- 
gion.    Whoever  preaches  to  them  a  different  religion  is  a 
'Jaganash' — an  Englishman — and  his  religion  is  not  held 
in  respect  by  them." 


<  ' " 


ri't  !v 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 


¥.  BAKACA  S  TEKSOMAL  APl'EARANCE  AND  TECULIAIi  TKAITS 

OF  CHARACTElt. JUS  HUMILITY^  POVEKTY;,  KINDiSJESS^ 

BURNlJsG    ZEAL    AND    RESTLESS    ACTIVITY. LA 

POINTE,  POl'ULATION^  PURSUITS^  EARLY 
SETTLERS. 


As  most  of  the  Pagans  in  La  Pointe  wlio  had  any 
leaning  to  Christianity  had  been  converted,  F.  Baraga  had 
but  few  baptisms  in  that  place  after  the  year  1840.  During 
1839-40  he  baptized  only  twenty-two  Pagan  adults.  He 
was,  however,  not  idle.  He  labored  hard  and  successfully 
in  order  to  gTOund  his  converts  in  the  knowledge  and  love 
of  Go<l  and  of  their  holy  religion.  He  was  untiring  in 
catechizing  both  children  and  adults,  preaching  with  fervor 
and  unction  the  word  of  God  on  Sundays  and  holy  days. 
His  sermons  were  very  plain,  adapted  to  the  capacity  of  hia 
imlearaed  hearers,  and  generally  short.  He  was  deeply 
emotional,  as  the  following  anecdote,  related  by  Hon.  Vin- 
cent Roy,  of  Superior,  lately  deceased,  shows.     He  says : 

"I  recollect  very  distinctly  on  two  or  three  different 
occasions  while  he  (F.  Baraga)  was  reading  the  gospel 
fi'om  the  pulpit  for  the  first  or  midnight  mass  at  Christ- 
mas, in  the  Chippewa  language,  that  the  passage: 
'And  wrapped  Him  up  in  swadling  clothes"  would 
bring  him  to  tears  and  three  or  four  minutes  would 
elap&e  before  he  could  control  himself,  so  as  to  be  able  to 
proceed.  In  fact,  I  remember  one  time  that  after  reading 
tJiose  words  he  was  so  much  affected  that  his  sobs  could  be 
distinctly  heard  all  over  the  church ;  he  could  not  recover 


196 


ItT.    REV.    FilEDERIC   BARAGA. 


'.1. 


m 


'■> 

'-  ! 

M' 

\  - 

■ 

:  1  #i..v'.  •■ 

\  *?H-. 

*                               ; 

'               '  '     ■ 

Mm 

r       '.'■':> 

himself  and  was  compelled  to  descend  from  the  pulpit 
without  completing  the  gospel." 

As  to  his  personal  appearance  IVIr.  Roy  says:  "I  ro- 
member  him  as  a  man  of  medium  height,  about  5  feet  4 
inches,  and  weight  about  150  pounds.  lie  was  stoutly 
built;  his  legs  were  veiy  disproportionately  short  in  com- 
parison to  his  body.  His  hair  was  dark  brown  aiid  he 
always  wore  it  long  and  in  curls,  as  his  picture  will 
show.  IJis  speech  was  slow,  c^ol  and  powerful,  and  he 
possessed  a  well  modulated  voice  and  distinct  emmciation. 
His  movements  were  very  deliberate  and  disrnified." 

Mr.  Roy  also  related  to  the  writer  an  incident  that 
shows  that  F.  Baraga  was  naturally  very  sensitive.  For  a 
yea.,  or  two  he  used  to  dine  at  jMrs.  T.acomb's,  an  aunt  of 
Mr.  Roy.  The  dinner  was  very  simple.  It  consisted  of 
com,  the  shell  of  which  had  been  removed  by  soaking  the 
com  in  Ive  or  something-  similar.  On  one  occasion  Mrs. 
Lacomb  being  almost  out  of  provisions  told  Baraga,  as  well 
as  she  could,  that  although  she  was  still  willing  to  keep  him 
she  had  hardly  an}'tliing  for  him  to  eat — that  he  should 
try  to  find  another  place.  Father  Baraga  became  excited 
and  exclaimed :  "Do  you  want  to  drive  me  away  ?"  She 
tried  to  explain,  but  he  was  too  excited  to  listen  and  left 
the  house.  The  poor  woman  felt  very  bad.  She  wept  bit- 
terly and  immediatelv  followed  him  to  the  church.  After 
some  explanation,  F.  Baraga  was  mollified  and  Mrs. 
Lacomb  left  consoled  and  pleased.  He  continued  taking 
his  poor  meals  at  her  house  as  heretofore.  He  made  her  a 
present  of  a  particle  of  the  Holy  Cross,  which  she  took 
WTth  her  when  she  removed  to  Courtes-Oreilles,  where  she 
was  maiTied  to  A.  Corbin.  This  precious  relic  was  placed 
with  the  "autJientica"  in  a  neat  reliquary  by  Rev.  Casimir 
Vogt,  O.  S.  F.,  and  is  still  kept  with  religious  care  in  the 
neat,  thougL  humble,  church  of  the  alx)ve-named  placa  So 
the  poor  Indian  church  of  Courtes  Oreilles  has  a  treasure, 
for  which  many  a  stately  cathedral  might  justly  envy  it. 


re 
it.' 


V. 


^|. 


'    1    ' 


Mi: 


APPEARANCE  AND  TRAITS  OF  CHARACTER 


197 


The  above  incident  shows  that  our  saintly  missionary  waa 
human  and  as  a  holy  Father  says  of  the  Apostles:  "Eoa 
vitia  non  nescisse  sed  emendasse,"  so  he,  too,  had  to  acquire 
virtue  by  the  constant  practice  of  self-restraint  and  self- 
denial. 

"From  four  to  five  in  the  moraing,"  said  Father  Jacker 
in  his  funeral  sermon  at  the  burial  of  Bishop  Baraga,  "or 
sometimes  from  three  to  five  you  would  find  him  kneeling, 
wrapped  in  his  cloak,  in  sweet  conversation  with  his  Lord, 
and  this  under  anv  and  all  circumstances.  We  have  seen 
him  thus  giving  the  first  hour  to  God  in  the  dark  forest  and 
on  the  shores  of  lakes,  amidst  tlie  roaring  storms  as  well  as 
in  his  private  chapel  or  in  some  hiden  corner  of  the 
crowded  stopping  places  while  on  his  journeys.  We  have 
had  occasion  to  observe  how  he  persisted  in  following  this 
rule  even  when  he  had  been  traveling  the  whole  preceding 
day  under  great  hardships,  by  water  and  by  land;  some- 
times even  when  he  had  not  been  able  to  go  to  rest  until 
after  midnight.  I  know  some  may  say:  This  was  over- 
doing things ;  was  unnecessary.  This  was  the  way  of  the 
saints  who  knew  that  a  thing  torn  a  little  will  tear  further 
and  further,  if  not  mended  in  time.  They  knew  when  a 
man  begins  to  grow  careless  about  his  axercises  of  devotion 
he  very  soon  begins  to  neglect  his  duties." 

Speaking  of  how  he  acquitted  himself  of  his  pastoral 
duties  whilst  at  La  Pointe,  the  above-mentioned  Hon.  Vin- 
cent Roy,  who  came  to  La  Pointe  in  1839,  when  about 
fourteen  years  old,  and  who,  with  his  brother  Francis,  re- 
ceived instruction  in  catechism  from  F.  Baraga  in  1840-41 
says : 

"He  said  but  one  mass  on  Sundays.  I  do  not  recollect 
his  teaching  catechism  on  Sundays.  Several  times  during 
the  week  he  taught  catechism  regularly  in  the  afternoon. 
In  his  visits  he  would  hastily  gather  the  adults  and  chil- 
dren of  the  neighborhood  and  teach  his  impnimptu  class 
the  truths  of  faith.    Vespers  on  Sundays  without  sermon. 


198 


IIT.    REV.    FRKDERIO    bAR\GA. 


;i:-   ir 


h  >i 


(5     i    !.' 

.1 1. 


No  statioiKs  on  I'^'idays,  but  during  Lent  (lie  had  Htationa) 
on  Fridays  and  otlicr  days  of  tho  n'CHjk.  Benediction  waii 
given,  I  tliink,  only  on  tlie  first  Sunday  of  each  month;  not 
oftoner  tlum  onee  a  month,  'i'he  singing  for  mass  was  in 
Gregorian  chant,  vocal  only,  only  male  voices  allowed. 
Vespers  were  sung  in  Chij)i)ewa,  vocal  only.  Christmas 
singing  was  vocal,  accompanied  hy  violins  and  flutes.  The 
choir  was  comi)oscd  as  follows:  Alexis  Charpentier,  An- 
toine  Gaud  in  and  a  Mr.  ^IcGillis.  On  C/hristmas  day  the 
instrumentalists  were:  Violin,  Mr.  Agnew,  a  clerk  of  the 
American  Fur  (\)mpany;  flute,  Charles  La  Rose,  govern- 
ment interpr(?tor. 

"Ho  made  at  least  one  visit  to  Fond  du  Lac  every  year, 
during  tho  summer,  by  l)oat.  I  rememl)er  he  and  Louis 
Gaudin  made  a  trip  to  Fond  du  Lac  on  snowshoes.  I  do 
not  know  with  whom  he  stopped  when  there.  There  never 
was  a  completed  church  nor  chapel  there.  Father  Pierz 
in  1842  or  1848,  started  to  build  one  of  hewed  logs,  but  it 
was  never  completed.  About  1 840-4.5  I  remember,  Francis 
Roussain,  Joseph  Charette,  J.  B.  Bellanger,  were  resident? 
of  Fond  du  Lac,  besides  the  employees  of  the  American 
Fur  Company  and  other  transient  visitors.  There  wore  no 
whites  nor  Indians  on  the  present  town  site  of  Superior, 
but  Indians  always  lived  near  the  entry  opposite  during 
the  summer  and  some  few  further  up  the  Minnesota-Point 
near  Duluth." 

Speaking  of  the  make-up  of  La  Pointe's  population  in 
Baraga's  time,  the  above-mentioned  gentleman  says: 

"There  were  no  pure  European  families  in  La  Pointe 
at  that  time.  European  males  married  into  mixed- 
blood  families,  with  the  exception  of  the  families  of  the 
Presbyterian  mission — Rev.  Sherman  Hale  and  Teacher 
Sprote  (two  families).  The  population  varied  very  much 
according  to  the  season.  In  the  winter  they  would  number 
about  thirty  or  forty  mixed-blood  families,  besides  a  very 
few  Pagan  Indian  families.     In  the  summer  the  popula- 


DESCIIIPTION  OP   LA   POINTB. 


199 


tion  would  alxmt  double  in  all  shades.  It  must  be  borne 
in  mind  that  La  Pointo  was  pi*e-eniinently  the  Indian 
depot  for  tho  distribution  of  goods  to  the  different  minor 
posts;  and  it  vvas  nec^'ssarily  the  headquarters  for  all  en- 
gaged in  the  fur  traffic.  Fishing  was  also  carried  on  very 
ext<3nsively.  Those  who  were  engaged  in  this  ofcupation 
were  those  who  remained  at  home  during  the  winter,  mend- 
ing nets  and  making  preparations  for  the  next  season's 
work.  Fishing  was  also  a  branch  of  the  American  Fur 
Company's  business. 

"There  was  but  one  store  and  that  was  the  fur  com- 
pany's. They  carrie<l  in  stock  everything  that  was  noces- 
'sary — groceries,  dry  goods,  hardware,  etc.  The  grocery 
department  occupied  a  two-story  building  about  the  same 
size  as  tho  dry  gooils  department  building,  one  standing 
on  each  side  of  a  street  leading  from  a  dock  about  the  same 
place  where  the  present  dock  now  is.  There  was  also  a 
baking  department,  which  was  situated  about  200  feet  east 
of  the  other  buildings.  There  was  no  saloon.  There  were 
two  carpenter  shops,  one  operated  by  Mr.  Perinier  and  the 
other  by  Dufault;  also  one  large  cooper  shop  maintained 
by  the  company,  one  blacksmith  shop,  etc.  There  was  also 
one  very  large  warehouse  for  repacking  fish ;  it  was  about 
200  feet  long  and  was  situated  on  the  dock.  In  the  rear 
of  these  buildings  the  company  also  maintained  a  very 
extensive  garden  and  orchard,  in  which  were  raised  all 
(kinds  of  garden  vegetables,  grapes,  cherries,  crab-apples, 
currants,  strawberries,  etc.  This  was  enclose<l  by  a  high 
board  fence  and  was  in  charge  o^  Old  Man  Oakes,  father 
of  Charles  H.  Oakes,  lately  of  St.  Paul,  who  was  an  expert 
gardener.  Antoine  Gaudin  assisted  him  one  or  two  years. 
^Squire'  Bell  was  at  La  Pointe  upon  my  arriv^al  in  1839. 
Roubidoux,  Charpentiers,  Dufaults,  Denome,  were  there 
before  me.  Remillard  came  two  or  three  years  after  me 
Stahls  and  O'Malley  came  during  Father  Chebul's  time, 
about  1860-Gl. 


200 


RT.    BEV.    FREDERIC   BABAUl. 


1 1 


rt0 
*}\\^,' 


■ip 


**Bonip  and  Oakcs  were  headmen  for  the  fnr  company 


(John  Jacob  Astor).     All  voyagtmrs, 


'runners/ 


as  they 


were  called,  were  employed  by  said  company.  Tlicy  would 
leave  La  Pointo  about  the  l)eginning  of  Soptemlx^r,  stay 
away  all  fall  and  winter  among  the  Indians  in  their  rospoc- 
tivo  districts,  collect  furs,  and  return  about  the  beginning 
of  June.  They  would  take  along  blankets,  clothes,  guns, 
etc.,  to  trade  with  the  Indians  for  their  furs.  They  took 
along  very  little  provisions,  as  they  depended  mostly  on 
hunting,  fishing,  wild  rice,  and  trade  with  the  Indians  for 
their  support.  There  were  several  depots  for  depositing 
goods  and  collecting  furs;  for  instance,  at  Fond  du  Lac^ 
!alinn..  Sand  Lake,  Court^es  Oreilles,  Lac  du  Flambeau, 
mouth  of  Yellow  Eiver,  etc.  The  vessels  used  on  Lake 
Superior  for  the  fur  trade  were  the  'John  Jacob  Astor,*  a 
;three-n]ast  schooner;  the  'Brewster,^  and  the  'Siskowit,* 
built  by  old  man  Perinier. 

"The  Presbyterian  school  was  then  in  full  operation 
under  Rev.  Sherman  Hall ;  number  of  scholars  at  this 
school,  which  was  a  day  school,  was  about  forty.  The  Hon. 
Vincent  Roy  went  to  said  school  two  winters." 


71    — 

•y   __ 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 


FATHER  BARAGA   LAMENTS   THE   WANT   OF   INDIAN   MISSION- 
ARIES.  TAKES  DOWN  HIS  CHURCH  AND  BUILDS 

ANOTHER  LARGER  ONE. 


F.  Baraga  would  have  gliidly  brought  the  light  of  the 
gospel  to  more  distant  Pagan  Indians,  but  he  could  not 
find  any  priest  to  take  charge  of  those  already  converted. 
To  abandon  them  in  order  to  go  after  Pagans  would  never 
do,  under  the  circumstances.  Henc<^  his  letter  to  the  Leo- 
poldine  Society  from  La  Pointe,  da.ted  October  7,  1840, 
breathes  a  feeling  of  justifiable  bitterness.  His  remarks 
may  justly  be  applied  to  more  than  one  of  our  reverend 
confreres,  who  might  work  with  fruit  amongst  our  poor 
Indians,  negroes  and  others.    He  writes : 

"Our  me?>ns,  moreover,  are  far  too  insufiicient.  I  do 
not  mean  exactly  our  pecuniary  means,  but  there  are  too 
few  apostolic  laborers  among  the  Indians.  'No  one  wants  to 
work  in  this  truly  desolate  vineyard  of  the  Lord.  The 
missionaries  who  come  over  from  Europe  prefer  to  stay 
with  the  Germans  or  with  other  civilized  inhabitants  of 
this  coimtry.  Hence  this  pari  of  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord 
remains  desolate  and  wild,  with  the  exception  of  some 
small  places.  In  this  territory,  which  extends  from  Lake 
Superior  north,  west  and  south,  and  which  in  size  is  far 
greater  than  the  whole  Austrian  empire,  lives  the  Chip- 
pewa nation,  whose  language  I  now  speak  fluently,  and  for 
this  whole  country,  so  vast  in  extent,  I  am  the  only  mis- 
sionary !  And  I  am  stationed  at  a  place  which  is  pretty 
populous,  witli  enough  people  in  it  to  need  even  for  itself 
exclusively  all  the  work  of  a  weak  man.     A  person  can 


i''ii 


202 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


ilib'i 


i 


.  ii 


imagine,  therefore,  what  progress  our  holy  faith  can  make 
"under  such  cirenmstances  in  this  abandoned  coiintrv. 

*'Eor  several  years  I  have  lxK>n  working  to  get  a  couple 
of  other  missionaries  to  come  here,  to  place  them  in  differ- 
ent places ;  but  nobody  comes !  Repeatedly  have  I  had 
promises  and  assurances,  but  when  they  were  to  be  carried 
out  those  making  them  preferred  living  among  civilized 
rather  than  with  wild  people,  which,  of  course,  is  more 
comfortable ;  but  the  poor  Pagans  continue  to  be  thereby 
the  prey  of  that  infernal  'lion,  who  goes  about  and  seeks 
whom  he  may  devour' ;  who  never  rests  and  does  much 
more  for  the  eternal  ruin  of  '^x)uls  than  those  priests  do  for 
their  salvation!  My  heart  bleeds  when  I  think  of  this 
misery.  I  purposely  abstain  from  these  sad  reflections,  not 
to  lapse  into  discouraging  sadness. 

"On  this  occasion  I  must  mention  that  I  am  on  the 
point  of  building  here  a  new  large  church,  for  the  present 
one  was  poorly  built,  and  is,  besides,  too  small,  for  this 
place  grows  year  after  year;  since  there  is  a  church  and 
resident  priest  here,  many  French  from  Canada,  who  are 
all  Catholics  and  wdio  used  to  live  heretofore  scattered 
among  the  Indians,  have  now  settled  here,  and  every  year 
more  are  coming.  The  French-Canadians  are  married  to 
Indian  women  and  some  of  them  have  large  families. 
Their  women  and  children  become  converted  to  the  Chris- 
tian religion  as  soon  as  they  come  here  and  receive  baptism 
after  sufficient  instruction.  Besides,  many  Indians  of  this 
place  have  been  converted  and  every  year  some  more  em- 
brace Christianity.  All  this  increases  my  congregation 
and  so  our  church  has  become  too  small.  Next  spring,  if 
God  spares  my  life,  the  new  church  will  be  erected.  The 
contract  for  building  it  has  been  made  with  the  trading 
company  here  (American  Fur  Co.)  The  building  will  be 
constmcted  of  wood,  and  plastered  inside,  as  is  generally 
done  in  this  c  untry.  All  the  lumber  in  the  present  church 
will  be  used  for  the  new  one,  for  the  boards  are  perfectly 


THANKS  BENEVOLENT  DONORS. 


203 


if 


tiy 


soimd  yet.  Hence  the  building"  will  cost  but  one  thousand 
dollars;  otherwise  the  cost  in  this  country,  where  every- 
thing; is  awfullv  dear,  would  cei*tainlv  be  more  than  foiu*- 
teen  hundred  dollars. 

"There  is  a  Canadian  here,  who  is  considered  a  pretty 
goo<l  sculptor.  Moreover,  in  order  to  give  a  more  audible 
call  to  those  more  distant  from  the  church,  T  have  procured 
a  bell  from  ^cw  York,  weighing-  477  pounds,  and  costing 
in  New  York  one  hundred  and  seventy-eight  dollars.  On 
the  2d  of  this  month  the  bell  arrived  and  the  Indians  were 
astonished  when  they  saw  it  and  heard  its  peals  of  thunder. 

"But  now  I  come  to  the  real  cause  of  writing  this  let- 
ter. I  received  on  the  2d  of  this  month  a  letter  with  a 
check  of  one  hundred  florins,  with  the  information  that 
this  mild  gift  came  from  G.  A.  G.,  a  pious  lady  of  Salz- 
bui'g.  I  hereby  return  most  heartfelt  thanks  to  the  pious 
giver.  I  also  make  use  of  the  present  occasion  to  thank 
most  earnestly  all  our  benefactors  for  their  generous  gifts. 
Go<l  gTant  to  all  of  them  the  never-ending  goods  of  heaven 
in  reward  for  their  temporal  benefactions." 

As  there  are  some  interested  parties  who,  year  after 
year,  try  to  palm  off  on  tourists  the  ridiculous  fable  that 
the  present  Catholic  church  in  La  Poin.te  was  built  by 
Pere  Marquette  some  two  hundred  or  more  years  ago,  we 
will  province  the  statement  of  two  perfectly  reliable  men, 
Hon.  Vincent  Roy,  of  Superior,  Wis.,  lately  deceased,  and 
of  Bishop  Baraga,  who  superintende{^l  the  building  of  the 
first  church  erected  in  1835,  and  of  the  second  one,  the 
present,  now  standing  on  La  Pointe  Island,  completed  in 
1841.     Mr.  Boy  says: 

"Lego  and  Belle  Isle  were  lx)tli  at  La  Pointe,  when  I 
was  first  there  in  1839.  I  do  not  know  whether  they 
helped  to  build  the  first  church  in  1835.  I  understood 
that  Joseph  Dufauld,  the  grandfather  of  Peter  Dufauld 
hej'e,  was  the  builder  of  the  first  church  at  Middle  Fort. 
This  church  was  taken  down  and   removed  about   1842 


204 


BT.    REV.   FBIDERIC   BARAGA. 


i)r 


■\ 


(should  be  1841)  to  whore  it  now  stands  by  Joseph 
Dufauld  (the  same  as  above),  who  had  the  whole  charge, 
beside-s  thirty  or  forty  assistants,  all  volunteers,  those  who 
could  spare  any  time.  I  do  not  know  where  the  material 
was  obtained  for  the  iii*st  building,  but  no  doubt  it  was 
right  on  the  ground.  Material  for  the  second  building 
was  all  taken  from  the  first,  as  above  stated  in  the  fore  part 
of  this  paragraph,  with  the  exception  of  the  shingles  and 
laths  and  mud  and  sand  for  plastering." 

Father  Baraga  made  the  following  entry  in  the  Bap- 
tismal Records,  at  the  end  of  the  book : 

"Tn  the  year  1841  the  undersigned  missionary  caused 
a  new  church  to  be  consti-ucted  (the  old  one  being  de- 
stroyed by  him,  w^hich  had  been  too  badly  constructed), 
and  at  the  same  time  he  placed  it  there  v/here  it  was  nearer 
to  tlie  greater  part  of  the  Catholic  congregation.  In  the 
month  of  July  of  the  same  year  this  church  was  finished, 
and  on  the  first  Sunday  of  August  the  undersigned  mis- 
sionary dedicated  it  to  God  under  the  name  of  the  same 
St.  Joseph." 

(Signed)       Fhederic  Baraga^  Missionary. 


m. 


,■.«')? 


t  »  ^.  ,,'■■■■■   ,     I 


The  building  and  completing  of  his  new  church  in- 
volved F.  Baraga  considerably  in  debt.  He  owed  the 
iVmerican  Fur  Company  four  hundred  dollars.  As  his 
church  had  been  finished  already  in  July,  1841,  it  is  not 
^0  be  wondered  that  after  waiting  over  a  w^hole  year  for 
'^r^  money  due  them  they  "dunned"  him  for  it.  Hence 
'.  l«s  urgent  letter  to  the  Prince  Archbishop  of  Vienna,  man- 
a.»er  of  the  Leopoldine  Society,  for  help.  This  letter  is 
dated  October  12th,  1842.  His  appeal  was  not  in  vain. 
The  society  sent  him  six  hundred  and  fifty  florins,  as  is 
seen  from  his  letter  of  thanks,  dated  La  Pointe,  September 
12th,  1843. 


1 

F 

\f        1 

II 

1  * 

1       r 
1      ■ 

1 

1 

i 

i:J 


ill 


i  :.'     I 


II. 


•'•J    '  l!i 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 


FATHER  BAlLiGA  LEAVES  LA  POINTE  TO  FOUND  THE  MISSION 

AT  i/aNSE^  MICH. 


In  the  letter  spoken  of  in  the  foregoing  chapter,  Father 
Baraga  says : 

"Moreover,  I  have  now  a  plan  to  start  this  fall  a  new 
mission  at  Lake  Superior  in  a  place  one  hundred  and 
eighty  miles  from  here,  which,  I  hope,  will  be  for  the  sal- 
vation of  many  souls,  according  to  the  promises  and  assur- 
ances made  to  me  by  pagans  living  there. 

"Here  in  La  Pointe  conversions  of  pagans  are  now  rare. 
Hence  I  desire  to  preach  elsewhere  the  gospel  to  the  poor 
pagan  Indians.  I  am  certain  of  gaining  more  of  them 
there  where  I  intend  to  start  the  new  mission  than  here. 
Ah,  what  a  consolation,  w^hat  unspeakable  joy  to  gain  im- 
mortal souls  for  Jesus  Christ ! 

"For  establishing  new  missions  a  little  assistance  is  al- 
ways needed.  A  chapel  has  to  be  built,  a  mission-house, 
and  a  school.  It  is  true  these  buildings  are  constructed 
only  of  wood,  but  the  builders  have  to  be  fed  and  paid. 
If  Your  Grace  would  send  me  again  next  spring  a  little 
pecuniary  assistance,  it  certainly  would  be  a  seasonable 
benefit  unto  the  eternal  salvation  of  many  precious  souls. 
Ah,  the  salvation  of  a  single  immortal  soul  is  infinitely 
more  worth  than  all  the  money  of  the  world! 

"I  pray  Your  Grace  to  forward  again  the  money  in- 
t-ended  for  my  mission  through  Ramsay  Crooks,  president 
of  the  American  Fur  Company.  This  company  indeed 
has  failed,  but  it  has  recovered  again  so  far  that  it  can  re- 


Ik 


ill! 


206 


RT.    REV.    FftEDERIC   BARAGA. 


i> 


I  ! 


I'll 


sumo  its;  brisiiio^s.  ^lorcover,  l^ainsay  Crooks  is  my 
H})ec'ial  friend  ajid  U'liofactor,  who  in  caisc  of  danger  would 
have  special  regard  for  me.  This  way  of  sending  money 
is  the  safesrt  and  shortest." 

As  to  the  first  injpnlse  given  to  onr  missionary  to  found 
the  L'Anse  Mission,  it.  seems  to  have  come  from  ^fr.  Pierre 
Crebassa,  as  we  read  in  his  letter,  published  in  the  L'Anse 
Sentinel.     He  Avrites : 


ai 


111 


few  facts 


dinii"  Kcv.  Father 


now  £>"ive 

T^ttraga,  the  second  priest  who  ca'iie  io  h'Anse.  (The  hrsi 
was  Kene  Menard,  S.  J.,  in  KiUU.)  1  came  to  L'Anse  in 
1837,  and  was  employed  by  the  American  Fur  Company. 
An  old  chief  named  Penanshi  caine  to  see  me  every  Sun- 
day. I  had  an  old  Bible  printed  in  the  French  language 
in  the  year  1815,  and  the  old  chief  used  to  I'equest  me  to 
read  to  him  from  the  book  and  explain  it,  which  I  did  to 
the  best  of  my  ability.  lie  desired  to  know  if  I  could  get 
a  priest  to  come  here,  and  I  rr plied  that  I  would  write  to 
Father  Baraga,  who  was  then  at  La  Pointe,  Wis.,  and  was 
the  only  priest  in  this  portion  of  the  country.  Accord- 
ingly I  wrote  to  Father  Baraga  explaining  matters  and  in- 
vited him  to  come.  That  was  in  1840.  He  replied  that 
he  could  not  leave  La  l^ointe,  as  he  had  a  church  and  a 
large  congregation  there.  Each  year  I  wTote  to  him,  and 
at  last,  in  1843,  I  received  the  following  letter,  written  in 
French,  which  is  correctly  translated  in  English : 

''Mr.  Pierre  Crehnssa,  My  Dear  Friend — I  received 
your  letter  on  the  6th  of  the  month  wdth  great  pleasure, 
and  T  think  I  am  obliged  to  accept  the  invitation  you  make 
me.  There's  now  three  vears'  resistance  to  the  invitation 
to  go  to  L'Anse,  f<ir  I  don't  like  to  le? ve  my  children,  and 
now  1  cannot  resist  any  more,  f«.r  I  think  it  Is  the  will  of 
God  that  I  must  go.  It's  for  that  reason  I  promise  you 
I  shall  go  to  L'Anse,  if  God  will  let  me  live.     I  think  I 


FOUNDS  A   MISSION    AT   LA  ANSE. 


207 


shall  go  in  the  schooner  of  Mr.  ^[eiiclcnhall,  the  'Algon- 
quin/ in  the  beginning  of  May,  and  I  shall  go  to  the  *Soo/ 
for  the  schooner  Avill  hot  go  to  L'Anse,  and  from  the  'Soo' 
I  shall  get  some  opportunity  to  go  to  your  place. 

"JJear  sir,  I  pray  you  tell  your  Indians  if  I  see  they 
will  join  the  Catholic  religion  I  will  stay  with  them  the 
fore  part  of  the  summer,  and  I  will  go  back  with  you  in 
the  month  of  July  to  La  Pointe,  and  you  can  also  tell  your 
Indians  if  I  sec  that  they  convert  to  the  Catholic  religion 
in  great  numbers,  I  shall  try  and  stay  with  them  if  I  can, 
and  get  another  in  my  place  at  La  Pointe,  if  our  Superior, 
the  Bishop,  gives  his  consent.  I  am,  dear  sir,  your  sincere 
friend, 

"Frp:i)eric  Baraga,  Missionary  Priest.'* 

La  Pointe,  March  13th,  1813. 

Through  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Carl  Edgerton,  of 
Jacobsville,  ]\Iich.,  the  writer  was  furnished  the  following 
interesting  item  in  regard  to  the  founding  of  the  L'Anse 
Mission.  The  article  is  from  the  pen  of  Hon.  P.  Crebassa, 
above  spoken  of.    We  give  his  account  in  full. 


\m 


I 


in 


,ke 


of 


REGARDING  FATHER  BARAGA. 

"In  my  last  letter  I  gave  a  detailed  account  of  Father 
Baraga's  arrival  at  L'Anse  in  1843.  He  came  in  Jane, 
1843 ;  shortly  after  writing  me  his  letter  of  acceptance,  he 
commenced  his  labor.  I  liad  arranged  everything  and  had 
a  number  of  Indians  camping  in  wig-wams  on  my  place.  I 
gave  Father  Baraga  half  of  my  house  to  use  as  a  chapel, 
and  for  the  purpose  of  teaching  the  Indians.  At  the  ex- 
piration of  one  w'eek  he  baptized  thirty  people,  men,  women 
and  children.  He  remained  another  week  and  w^hen  he 
left  he  promised  the  Tndians  that  he  would  move  tx)  L'Anse 
in  the  fall  of  that  year  and  remain  with  them  for  a  time. 
He  then  returned  to  La  Pointe,  and  for  the  journey  I  fur- 


iiHii 


hi' 


f. : 


6: 


208 


BT.   BEV.   FREDEBIO  BAHAGA. 


nishod  him  with  a  canoe  and  sent  two  of  ray  men  to  ac- 
company him.  Upon  his  arrival  I  received  the  following 
letter  from  him,  written  in  English : 

"Mr.  P.  Crehassa,  L'Anse,  Mich.,  Dear  Sir — I  write 
you  only  a  few  lines  to  thank  you  for  all  your  charity  and 
goodness  to  me.  I  am  unable  to  recompense  you  for  all 
your  goodness  and  services.  I  pray  God  that  He  may  do 
what  I  cannot  and  that  He  may  bless  you  in  this  world  and 
in  the  next. 

"I  hope  you  do  on  Sundays  as  I  requested  of  you  before 
I  left  your  place  for  the  good  work.  Also  that  Almighty 
God  will  recompense  you.  I  beg  you  to  continue  as  long 
as  you  remain  there. 

"Our  voyage  has  been  somewhat  disagreeable,  but 
short.  We  arrived  here  on  Friday  at  six  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon.  Your  men  intended  to  start  immediately  the 
following  day,  but  Isidore  felt  a  little  (wanting  in)  energy, 
and  they  intend  to  start  tomorrow  morning.  You  will 
please  give  these  little  incidents  to  Marimann. 

"With  much  respect,  your  sincere  friend, 

"Fredekic  Baraga. 

"The  beads  you  will  give  to  Nancy,  together  with  my 
friend's  salutation." 

La  Pointe,  June  18th,  1843. 


T:: 


-i  ■, 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 


FATHER  BAKAOa's   LABOKS   IN   l'aNSE   MISSION   DURING  THK 
YEARS  1843-1844.      BISHOP  IIENNl's,  OF  MILWAUKEE, 
FIRST  VISIT  TO  LA  POINTE  IN   1844. 

Having  labored  at  La  Pointe  for  eight  years  in  apos- 
tolic poverty,  but  also  with  apostolic  zeal  and  success,  F. 
Baraga  loft  the  mission  on  the  4th  of  October,  St.  Francis 
Day,  1843,  and  arrived  at  UAnse  on  the  24th  of  the  same 
month.  The  poor  Indians  were  exceedingly  glad  that  a 
missionary  had  come  to  their  place.  They  came  and  shook 
hands  with  him  in  a  friendly  manner.  He  at  once  began 
his  labors,  which  were  fruitful  in  conversions.  In  about 
two  months  he  converted  and  baptized  twenty-nine  pagans. 
Within  four  months  fifty-six  had  been  "regenerated  of 
water  and  the  Holy  Ghost"  and  become  children  of  God 
and  members  of  His  holy  church.  He  says:  "Among 
them  were  some  who  soon  after  they  had  received  the  grace 
of  baptism  entered  eternity,  clothed  in  the  white  garment 
of  baptismal  innocence,  with  which  they  were  immediately 
admitted  to  the  nuptial-banquet  of  the  Lamb." 

Soon  after  his  arrival  F.  Baraga  opened  an  Indian 
school,  which  he  himself  conducted  conjointly  with  some 
pious  and  able  persons  whom  he  had  brought  from  La 
Pointe  for  that  purpose.  The  number  of  his  scholars  was 
fifty-one,  of  whom  twenty  were  boys,  three  men,  nineteen 
girls,  and  nine  women.  These  scholars  were  fii'st  in- 
structed in  reading  and  Christian  doctrine,  thereafter  also 
in  writing  and  arithmetic.  Most  of  them  easily  leai*ned 
to  read,  because  they  had  a  great  liking  for  it.  Several  of 
them  were  able  to  re^id  in  two  months. 


i 


Ill 


210 


BT.   REV.    FREDKfilC   BARAGA. 


Seeing  how  wpll-inclined  liis  ^nod  neophytes  were,  he 
(leterniined  to  establish  a  permanent  mission  in  the  place. 
Hence,  after  his  arrival,  he  eommeneed  to  niaJ^c  prepara- 
tions for  hnildinjr  a  small  chnreh  with  a  room  for  the  priest, 
a  school  honse  and  some  small  log  honses  for  the  nowly  con- 
verted Indians.  It  was  his  linn  conviction  that  as  long  as 
the  latter  lived  scattered  in  the  forests,  in  their  wigwams, 
thev  could  not  ho  civilized  and  become  accustomed  to  in- 
dusti';>'  and  cleanliness.  His  ])lan,  therefore,  was  to  make 
a  small  Christian  ''Reduction"  or  settlement,  after  the  ex- 
am])le  of  the  good  old  Jesuits  in  Paraguay,  and  collect  the 
Indians  all  in  one  village  near  the  church.  This  plan 
pleased  them  ven'  much.  They  all  promised  to  live  here- 
after in  honses  and  to  adopt  the  ways  of  the  whites. 

The  same  plan  was  carried  out,  as  far  as  practicable, 
by  the  .lej^uits  in  Canada  'luring  the  seventeenth,  and  by 
the  Franciscans  during  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth 
century  in  California.  To  any  one  acquainted  with  In- 
dian Avays  and  the  strange,  fascinating  influence  which 
pagan  dances,  feasts,  incantations,  and  other  species  of 
jugglery  exert  \ipon  them,  it  is  a  foregone  conclusion  that, 
if  we  want  to  establish  Christianity  among  them  on  a  per- 
manent basis,  we  must  endeavor  to  get  our  Christian  In- 
dians as  much  as  possible  away  from  their  pagan  surround- 
ings. Where  Indians  form  exclusivelv  Christian  com- 
munities  they  make  good,  exemplary  Christians.  We  see 
this  exemplified  in  La  Pointe  Bayfield,  Buffalo  Bay, 
Baraga,  Papashkominitigong,  Harbor  Springs  and  else- 
where. But  where  Indians  live  among  pagans,  as  in  Bad 
River  Reser\^ation,  Courtes  Oreilles,  Pakwewang,  etc.,  they 
are  easily  induced  to  attend,  and  sometimes  even  to  take 
part  in  pagan  dances  and  feasts.  In  case  of  sickness,  they 
sometimes  send  for  that  species  of  Indian  humbug  and 
trickery,  the  medicine-man,  and  have  him  perform  his  dia- 
bolical incantations.  Jiving  Avith  pagans,  they  readily 
inter-marry  with  them.    Although  such  marriages  may  at 


si  i 


fiy, 


THE   INDIAN'S   AVEIISION    TO   WOBK. 


211 


see 
Bay, 
else- 
Bad 
they 
take 
thev 

I 

and 
dia- 
dily 

y  at 


times  1)0  thf  Iminaji  inoanH  of  brinjjjiiig  the  pagan  to  adopt 
(^hristianity,  it  often  resultH,  as  in  mixed  marriages,  in 
perverting  the  Catholic  party,  especially  if  the  pagan  Ik?  a 
person  strongly  wedded  to  his  snj)erstitions  and  possessing 
a  resolute  eharaeter.  The  writer  s])e.ak!;5  from  personal 
knowledge  and  twenty  years'  observation.  Could  we  but 
t^8tablish  such  exclusively  Catholic  Indian  colonies  far 
enough  away  from  the  evil  influence  of  had  whites  and 
pagans,  there  would  be  some  hope  for  tlie  future  of  the  In- 
dian race ;  as  it  is,  we  are  working  for  "a  lost  (uiuse." 

Moreover,  the  idea  that  the  Indian  must  ^irst  Ik)  in- 
duced to  become  a  farmer  in  order  to  make  of  him  a  civil- 
ized man  is  absurd.  All  his  Indian  instincts  revolt  against 
it.  lie  is  quite  willing  to  cultivate  a  small  ])atch  of  land 
to  raise  some  iwtatoes,  cabbage,  onions,  etc.,  but  to  farm  on 
a  large  scale,  as  his  white  brother  does,  is  disagreeable  to 
him.  The  writer  does  not  know  of  five  Indians  in  all 
noilhern  Wisconsin  who  have  as  much  as  forty  acre«  under 
cultivation.  They  are  born  hunters,  fishermen,  and,  to  a 
considerable  extent,  mechanics.  The  Indian  is  imitative, 
a  sort  of  natural  mechanic.  Give  him  tools  and,  with  vei-y 
little  instruction,  he  will  do  mechanical  work  as  well  as  the 
average  white  man ;  he  will  build  houses,  barns,  make 
boats,  etc.,  better  than  a  great  many  whites,  unless  the  lat- 
ter be  trained  mechanics.  If,  instead  of  letting  his  pine 
be  logged  by  thieving  corporations,  who  will  cheat  him 
whenever  they  can,  the  government  had  erected  cheap  saw- 
mills and  other  factories  for  working  up  his  timber  into 
lumber,  shingles,  laths,  staves,  tubs,  barrels,  chairs,  tables, 
etc.,  under  the  supervision  of  a  few  skilled  and  conscien- 
tious white  mechanics,  his  large  forests  would  have  sup- 
ported him  for  many  a  year.  As  it  now  is,  his  pine  is  fast 
id  then  miser 


disapp'^a"  ing, 
lot. 


^7 


!'18 


m 
I 


F.  Baraga  wrote  on  the  12tli  of  February  as  follows 


1 1  I" 


!fi!L 


212 


RT.   aEV.    FREDEHIC  BAR^C^A. 


i'S 


t    I 


"I  promised  to  have  fifteen  houses  built  for  the  newly 
converted  Indians  tliis  year.  Xext  year^  if  God  keeps  me 
alive  and  I  get  assistance,  I  shall  have  several  more  built. 
This  undertaking  will  cost  considerable  money.  Our 
buildings,  of  course,  are  constructed  merely  of  logs,  which 
cost  nothing  here.  But  the  carpenters  must  be  paid  and 
the  boards  for  the  floor  have  to  be  sawed  with  whip-savi^s, 
as  we  have  no  saw-mills  here.  But  what  a  gain  if  once 
this  mission  be  establishtd !  How  many  poor,  barbarian 
savag-es,  who  live  in  huts,  which  are  to  be  compared  to 
hea/r-lairs,  and  whose  habits  correspond  to  their  surround- 
ings, will  become  civilized  and  be  transformed  into  good, 
God-serving  Christians !  According  to  a  rough;  estimate 
made  by  me,  this  Indian  settlement  Avill  cost  between  four 
and  five  hundred  dollars.  I  respectfully  pray  ^our 
Princely  Highness  to  do  for  this  'Reduction'  as  much  as 
you  think  proper." 

Although  all  that  sjioke  to  F.  Baraga  about  his  projects 
told  him  they  were  impracticable,  still  he  succeeded  in  ao 
complishing  all  he  had  intended.  He  says  in  his  letter  of 
the  27th  of  August,  1844,  written  at  La  Pointe: 

"With  the  help  of  the  Good  Shepherd,  whom  it  pleases 
to  call  us  to  seek,  after  His  example,  the  lost  sheep  in  the 
desert  in  order  to  lead  it  back  to  Him;  and  with  great 
effort  and  exertion,  I  myself  working  with  them  during  all 
that  time — 'ministraverunt  manus  i^tae' — I  finally  suc- 
ceeded in  L^complishing  all,  unto  the  honor  of  God  and  the 
salvation  of  souls,  for  which  be  special  thanks  tc  God ! 

"Since  I  am  still,  alas,  the  only  missionary  in  this  ex- 
tensive Lake  Superior  country,  I  cannot  remain  always  in 
one  place.  Hence  I  have  been  low  here  in  La  Pointe  for 
a  montli  on  a  missionary  visit.  Next  Mori  lay,  September 
2d,  I  expect  to  leave  for  L'Anse. 

"The  mission  of  La  Pointe  belongs  now  to  the  new  dio- 
cece  of  Milwaukee.  On  the  14th  of  this  mouth  (August, 
1844),  we  had  the  honor  o/  seeing  here  the  first  bishop  of 


iaSm 


BISHOP  HENNI'S  VISIT. 


213 


th?8  new  diocese.  This  pious,  venerable  and  zealous  bishop, 
Johii  Martin  Henni,  a  German,  did  much  good  during  the 
short  time  he  stayed  here.  His  instructions,  full  of  unction 
and  very  appropriate,  vs^hich  he  gave  to  this  Indian  congre- 
gation, I  acting  as  interpreter,  have  made  a  deep  and,  as 
I  hope,  lasting  impression  on  the  minds  of  these  simple- 
hearted  Christians.  He  confirmed  one  hundred  and 
twenty-two  persons,  among  others  a  gi*own-up  sick  girl, 
who  died  some  days  after,  very  well  prepared. 

"This  worthy  prelate  intends  to  make  next  winter  a 
journey  to  Europe  for  the  good  of  his  new,  but  very  poor, 
diocese.  When  he  comes  to  Vienna,  I  beg  Your  Princely 
Highness  to  lend  him  as  much  assistance  as  possible,  for 
you  can  imagine  that  a  new  diocese,  bordering  on  the  In- 
dian country  and  taking  in  a  part  of  it,  must  be  very  poor. 
When  he  saw  our  mission-church  he  said  that  it  was  better 
than  his  cathedral!  This  expresses  sufficiently  the  poverty 
of  his  diocese." 


all 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

FATHER  BARAOa's  T-ABORS  DURING  1844-45.      HIS  LONG 
JOURNEYS  ON  FOOT  TO  DISTANT  MISSIONS. 


Speaking  of  a  new  Indian  work,  the  ''Gagikwe-masi- 


?« 


.■  '1. 


'-m 


naigan 


j> 


-''Sennon-book" — he  writes : 

"I  also  mention  on  this  occasion  that  I  have  now  re- 
ceived my  third  Indian-mission  work.  It  coni>ists  of  ex- 
tracts taken  from  the  Bible  histoi'v  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testament,  Sunday  and  holy  day  Gospels  and  Epistlea. 
Some  years  ago  1  intended  to  have  it  printed  in  Green, 
Bay,  but,  through  want  of  funds,  I  sent  it  to  Laibaoh 
(Austria)  to  be  printed.  The  edition  contains  eight  hun- 
dred copies,  is  neatly  printed,  and  so  correct  that  I  cannot 
sufficiently  admire  the  extreme  care  of  the  proof-readers, 
who,  after  all,  do  not  understand  a  single  word  of  the  In- 
dian language.  Great  was  the  joy  of  my  good  Indians  at 
this  new  book  in  their  language.  I  trust  it  will  produce 
good  finiits  in  many  hearts." 

In  a  letter,  dated  L^Anse,  October  4th,  1844,  he  states 
that  he  had  received  from  the  Leopoldine  Society  650 
florins,  and  that  he  would  receive  in  due  time  the  265 
florins  sent  for  him  to  Bishop  Henni,  of  Milwaukee.  He 
mentions  that,  contrary  to  all  expectation,  he  had  completed 
last  summer  his  entire  mission  establishment.  Speaking 
of  his  privations  there,  he  says : 

"L'Anse  is  an  unpleasant,  sad,  sterile  place,  in  no  com- 
parison with  La  Point(».  Solely  the  wish  to  help  these  poor 
Indians  attain  eternal  happiness  keeps  me  here.  I  have 
here,  it  is  true,  no  comforts,  oftentimes  barely  the  neces- 
saries of  life;  but  what  consolation,  what  grand  reward, 


rd, 


o 


c 


05 


c 
c 


o 


fl3 


111 

1 


i 


I !'; 


Ji;  s   ' ' 


il'i'li 


I!" 


%^' 


I''' I 


I!  I 


A   NEW   CHURCH   DEDICATED. 


215 


what  unspeakable  joy  will  it  bo  for  me  when,  on  the  Day 
of  Judgment,  some  of  these,  my  good  children  in  Christ, 
or,  rather,  all  of  them,  as  I  hope,  will  surround  me  and 
give  their  testimony  before  the  rigorous  Judge :  'He  was 
the  first  to  announce  to  us  Thy  divine  word;  he  has  told 
us  of  Thy  mercies,  shown  by  Thee  to  man  through  Thy 
Son,  and  filled  our  hearts  with  faith  and  love  towards 
Thee!  O,  how  I  thank  my  God  for  calling  me  to  the  la- 
borious, indeed,  but  at  the  same  time,  highly  consoling  misr 
sionaiy  state !' 

"I  also  mention  that  the  20th  of  September,  the  very 
day  I  received  Your  Grace's  letter,  was  one  of  the  holiest 
days  for  my  new  mission,  for  on  that  Sunday  we  celebrated 
with  all  possible  solemnity  the  dedication  of  our  mission- 
church.  With  joyful  and  grateful  heart  I  dedicated  this 
church  to  'The  Most  Holy  ^ame  of  Jesus.'  The  thought: 
my  Jesus,  I  have  built  this  house  to  Thy  name,  filled 
my  heart  with  imutterable  joy.  It  is  but  a  small  wooden 
building,  yet  it  is  holier  than  th:  temple  of  Solomon,  that 
wonder  of  architecture,  for  it  is  sanctified  by  the  real  pres- 
ence of  Him,  whom  heaven  and  earth,  and  the  heaven  of 
heavens  cannot  contain.  He  does  not  disdain  to  dwell  in 
it,  whose  first  abode  on  earth  was  a  manger." 

From  his  letter  of  the  24th  of  October,  1845,  wo  see 
that  he  was  not  forgotten  by  the  Leopoldine  Society  and 
tliat  they  seconded  by  liberal  donations  his  efforts  in  behalf 
of  his  new  mission.  Thus  they  sent  him  again  two  thou- 
sand florins  to  enable  him  to  meet  his  obligations  towards 
the  American  Fur  Company,  who  supplied  him  with  all 
the  necessaries  for  bis  mission-buildings,  etc.  As  to  his 
personal  wants,  they  were  few  and  easily  supplied.  What 
money  he  received  he  used  for  the  furtherance  of  his  work, 
but  not  for  himself.  He  intended  also  to  apply  a  part  of 
the  money  towards  building  two  small  churches,  one  at 
Fond  du  Lac  and  the  other  at  Grand  Portage,  both  in  Min- 
nesota.   Speaking  of  the  last  named  mission,  he  says : 


■  K 


216 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


r     f 


"F.  Pierz  began  a  mission  at  Grand  Portage  and  bap- 
tized there  very  many  Indians.  But  he  soon  left  them  and 
went  to  reside  at  Arbre  Croche,  and  so  there  is  no  mission- 
church  yet  at  Grand  Portage.  I  shall  build  one  there  and 
will  dedicate  it  to  'The  Most  Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus'  next 
fall.  I  thank  my  Jesus  that  He  has  sent  me  through  my 
benefactors  the  funds  for  building  that  little  church.  It 
is  very  useful  to  have  churches  in  all  mission-stations,  even 
where  a  missionary  priest  does  not  reside  continually ;  for 
from  time  to  time  a  missionary  comes  to  such  places,  even 
in  winter;  moreover,  those  little  churches  built  of  bark 
cannot  always  be  used.  Besides,  where  Indians  have  a 
decent  church,  they  meet  regularly  on  all  Sundays  and 
holy  days  to  sing,  pray,  and  read  their  prayer  book,  the 
same  as  if  the  missionary  were  with  them  continually.  So 
they  do  here,  when  I  go  anywhei-e,  and  so  they  do  in  La 
Pointe.  O,  how  happy  I  am  in  advance  that  they  will  do 
so  also  in  Fond  du  Lac  and  Grand  Portage,  to  the  honor 
of  God  and  the  salvation  of  immortal  souls !" 

In  the  winter  of  1845-46  a  pagan  Indian  came  to  see 
F.  Baraga.  He  came  from  an  Indian  village,  five  days* 
journey  from  L'Anse.  The  Indian  informed  the  Father 
that  the  head-chief  of  that  place  had  a  great  desire  to  see 
and  hear  him.  This  was  enough.  He  immediately  set 
out  for  that  place  to  ascertain  the  feelings  of  said  chief 
and  his  people  in  regard  to  religion.  The  evening  of  his 
arrival  he  requested  all  the  men  to  meet  in  the  large  wig- 
wam of  the  head-chief.  In  a  long  discourse,  among  other 
things,  he  proposed  to  them  to  come  and  settle  do'svn  at 
L'Anse,  as  in  their  present  place  of  abode  the  traders  were 
accustomed  to  bring  them  the  destructive  "fire-water," 
whereas  at  L'Anse,  where  all  were  Christians,  the  importa- 
tion of  that  ruinous  poison  had  ceased.  His  appeal  seems 
to  have  met  with  little  success.  Some  promised  to  immi- 
grate to  L'Anse  the  next  summer  and  become  Christians. 
Others,  however,  were  undecided.     They  told  the  Father 


;1 


swi  ii.llllllllMJ]»MMUUI-«P««rT.'. 


\   ^ 


HIb   HARDSHIPS   DESCRIBED. 


217 


for 


that,  by  next  spring,  they  wonld  make  up  their  minds 
whether  to  remove  to  his  village  or  remain  where  they 
were.  It  seems  that  the  most  of  them  turned  their  hearts 
against  the  summons  of  God's  anointed  minister  and  re- 
mained in  their  pagan  village,  where  their  descendants 
still  reside.  Lac  Vieux  Deserts  and  Lac  du  Flambeau  are 
yet  strongholds  of  paganism  to  this  day.  As  F.  Baraga 
made  that  long  journey  on  snow-shoes,  he  gives  in  his  letter 
of  January  24th,  1846,  a  description  of  the  hardships  to 
be  endured  in  that  mode  of  traveling.    He  says : 

''In  this  connection  I  will  explain  how  a  missionary 
has  to  travel  during  winter  in  this  Indian  country.  In 
winter  a  person  cannot  travel  otherwise  than  on  foot.  As 
the  snow  is  generally  deep  and  there  are  no  traveled  roads, 
the  only  way  to  travel  is  on  snow-shoes.  These  snow-shoes 
are  from  four  to  five  feet  long  and  one  foot  wide  and  are 
tied  to  one's  feet.  With  them  a  man  can  travel  even  in 
the  deepest  snow  without  sinking  in  very  much.  But  this 
style  of  walking  is  very  tiresome,  especially  for  Euro- 
peans, who  are  not  accustomed  to  it.  When  a  person  must 
walk  upon  such  snow-shoes  all  day  long,  and  that  for  many 
days  in  succession,  especially  in  these  trackless  North 
American  forests,  he  cannot  travel  without  extreme  fatigue 
and  almost  total  exhaustion. 

"Another  hardship  is  the  sleeping  in  the  open  air  in 
a  northern  winter,  for  there  are  no  huts  in  which  to  stay 
over  night.  Generally  speaking,  a  man  may  travel  four  or 
five  days  in  this  extensive  and  thinly  settled  country  be- 
fore coming  to  another  Indian  settlement.  It  is  true,  a 
large  fire  is  made,  but  this  soon  goes  out,  for  the  Indian 
guide,  who  accompanies  us,  sleeps  the  whole  night  as  if 
he  were  in  a  feather-bed,  and  then  a  person  suffers  much, 
from  the  cold.  It  is  hard,  especially,  to  pass  the  night  in 
such  a  way,  when  it  storms  and  snow^s  all  night  and  in  the 
morning  a  person  is  covered  all  over  with  snow.  But  all 
these  hardships  the  missionary  joyfully  endures  if  thereby 


iSiU 


i 


i  f' 


218 


BT.   BEV.   FREDERIC    BARAGA. 


he  can,  through  God's  help  and  ^'aee,  save  even  but  ono 
soul. 

"I  have  to  inalce  this  winter  a  far  longer  journey,  that 
is,  from  L'Anse  to  La  Pointe  and  Fond  du  Lac  and  ver 
turn,  a  distance  of  about  s^ix  hundred  and  ninety  miles!  I 
will  begin  this  journey,  please  God,  on  the  4th  of  Feb- 
I'uary,  and  hope  to  be  back  hero  again  before  the  end  of 
March.  I  ani  going  to  Fond  di'  Lac,  Minn.,  to  make  ar- 
rangements for  the  build  yig  oi  .1  o-liurch  ihere.  I  think, 
thertiifter,  I  will  1  jc  go  tlv  ;    iu:^^  moi'e,  as  now  a  mission- 


namely,  Rev.  Father 
where 


a>,  La  Pointe 


ary  has  arrived  for  m^   as;  ?  4:ui>x, 
Otto  Skolla,  who  spends  this  wintei 
I  have  been  for  eight  years. 

"I  take  the  liberty  to  ask-  Your  Grace  to  kindly  send 
me  a  small  box  with  the  following  mission  requisites: 
One  thousand  small  colored  pictures  for  children,  some 
large  colored  pictures,  rosaries,  medium  sized  copper  cruci- 
fixes, 2x3  inches  long,  two  sets  of  vestments,  linen  altar 
cloths,  a  chalice,  a  small  monstrance,  a  censer  with  boat,  a 
ciborium,  some  tin  water  c-ruets,  a  holy  water  font,  etc. 


\  I. 
!   'I 


1 


(■ 


1:1; 


■■'■  S 


h    1: 


;", 

i^ 

asBnnBBH 


■Hi 


cifAPTEr?  xxxvr. 

WONDEKFUL    FSCAPE   OF    FATIfKR    BARAO.A,   WITKN   CROSSINQ 
LAKE  SUPERIOR  IN  A  SMALL  SAIL-BOAT.      ifIS  ADVEN- 
TURE ON  A  FLOATING  FIELD  OF  ICE. 


We  learn  from  F.  Baraga's  letter,  written  in  '  '■!>er, 
1845,  that  he  intended  to  go  to  Grand  Portage,  >^:i.i .  ^ho 
next  fall  to  build  a  church  there.  It  is,  therefo.;  lu^L^ily 
probable  that  he  made  that  trip  in  the  fall  of  it4  <  He 
first  went  to  La  Pointe,  wL'^ro,  no  doubt,  he  >peut  bonie 
time  attending  to  the  spiritual  wants  of  the  i.:  -^  people. 
He  then  engaged  a  half-breed  Indian,  named  i^ouis  Gau- 
din,  to  go  with  him  to  Grand  Poi*tage.  They  had  but  a 
small  fishing  boat  with  a  mast  and  sail,  without  keel  or 
centre-board.  Such  a  boat  might  do  on  a  river  or  small 
lake,  but  would  he  very  unsafe  on  a  large  lake,  where  it 
would  easilv  founder  or  be  driven  like  a  cork  before  the 
wind.  The  boat  was  but  eighteim  feet  long.  When  they 
started  from  La  Pointe  the  people  lauglied  at  them  for  at- 
tempting to  make  the  journey.  They  said  it  would  take 
them  a  month  to  make  the  voyage,  as  they  would  have  to 
keep  close  to  the  shore  all  the  way,  going  first  west  some 
seventy  miles  to  the  end  of  the  lake  ar.d  then,  doubling, 
turn  northwestward,  coasting  along  the  northern  shore  of 
Lake  Superior.  This  would  make  the  distance  about  two 
himdred  miles,  perha})S  even  more. 

HoAvever,  Father  Baraga  and  his  guide  set  out  on  their 
perilous  journey.  At  Sand  Island  they  awaited  a  favor- 
able wind  to  cross  the  lake,  which  is  about  forty  miles  wide 
at  that  place.  By  so  doing  they  would  save  from  eighty 
to  one  hundred  miles,  but  would  expose  themselves  to  great 


«    I', 


,1  I  ' ' 


220 


R..   REV.    FKEDERIC    BABUU. 


I  'V 


!■' !  '■ 

,■'■    ■:( 

i . ':. : 

I 

i  '  r 
l!  $• 

■•    ;    .  'I' 

h. 

'     i. 

■  i  jji; 

pi  p' 
m 

u  il 


i;     f: 


danger,  as  a  high  wind  might  arise,  -whilst  they  were  out 
on  the  open  lake,  and  engulf  their  frail  bark. 

They  set  sail  on  an  unusually  calm  day.  Father 
Baraga  steered  and  Louis  rowed  the  boat.  Before  thoy 
got  midway  a  heavy  west  wind  arose  and  the  lake  grew 
very  rough.  They  w^re  constantly  driven  k^eward  and 
when  th(^v  finallv  reached  +:ie  north  shore  they  were  at 
least  thirty  miles  east  of  '■  .leir  intended  landing  place,  hav- 
ing made  a  very  perils  ^is  sail  of  seventy  miles  during  that 
dav. 

While  in  th'  height  of  the  storm,  in  mid-ocean,  it 
might  be  sai^',  Louis  became  frightened  and  exclaimed  in 
Chippewa  o  the  Father,  who  was  lying  on  his  back  in  the 
boat,  recit  ng  his  office  in  an  imconcerned  manner: 
*'Nosse,  ki  ^a-nibomin,  ganabatch" — Father,  perhaps  we 
are  going  i-)  perish!"  The  Father  answered  quietly: 
"Kego  segisi.'en,  Wizon'  '(Chippewa  for  Louis) — "Don't 
be  afraid,  Wiion ;  the  priest  will  not  die  in  the  water.  If 
he  died  here  in  the  water  the  people  on  the  other  shore, 
whither  we  are  goi.^.flr,  would  be  unfortunate." 

When  nearing  tht.  north  shore  the  danger  was  even 
greater  than  out  on  the  J^iep  watesr,  for  there  were  huge 
breakers  ahead.  Louis  asked  the  Father  whither  to  steer, 
and,  as  if  folloAving  a  c^^rtain  inspiration,  F.  Baraga  told 
him  to  !^teer  straight  ahead  for  the  land.  Through  a  spe^ 
cial  disposition  of  Divine  Providence  watching  over  the 
precious  life  of  the  saintly  missionary,  they  passed  through 
the  breakers  nnhanned  and  ran  their  boat  into  the  mouth 
of  a  small  river,  heretofore  unnametl,  but  now  called  Cross 
River. 

Full  of  gratitude  for  their  miraculous  escape,  they  at 
once  proceeded  to  erect  a  cross.  Hewing  a  ti'ee  in  a  rough 
manner,  they  cut  oil  the  top  as  far  up  as  they  could  i*each, 
and  tal<:ing  a  shorter  piece,  they  nailed  it  crossrwise  to  the 
tree.  "Wizon,"  said  the  Father,  "let  us  make  a  cross  here 
that  the  Christian  Indians  ^ndy  know  that  the  priest  com- 


■H 


CROSS  THE   LAKE   IN   BIRCH  CANOE. 


221 


ing  from  La  Pointe  lando<l  here."  The  criASs  was,  it  is 
true,  uuartistic,  but  it  was  an  eniblem  o^  their  holy  faith 
and  it  gave  the  name,  Tcliibaiatigo-Sibi,  ''Cross  River," 
to  the  little  streajii  where  thev  land(Mi. 

They  arrived  none  too  soon.  Aseending  an  eminence 
and  lo<jking  out  on  tlie  immense  lake  they  saw  tliat  the 
stonn  was  increasing  evei*y  moment;  high  waveti  with 
whit<^  caps,  which  would  surely  have  engulfcMl  their  little 
bark.  Th(\y  landed  about  six  o'clock  in  the  evening.  Hav- 
ing S])ent  the  night  there,  they  continued  their  journey 
next  day,  and  in  two  days  arrived  at  Grand  J'ortage,  hav-** 
ing  made  the  whole  journey  in  three  days.  May  we  not 
think  with  Louis  Gaudin  that  their  safe  passage  across  the 
stonny  lake,  and  their  deliverance  from  a  watery  grave, 
was  due  to  a  special  intervention  of  Divine  Providence  in 
favor  of  the  saintly  missionary  ? 

In  1CG7  Father  Claude  Allouoz,  S.  J.,  then  stationed 
at  the  mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost  at  the  head  of  Chequa- 
megon  Bay,  made  the  voyage  across  tlie  lake  from  Sand 
Island.  lie  made  the  voyage  in  a  birch-canoe  with  three 
Indians.  He  remarks  that  they  paddletl  their  canoe  all 
day  as  hard  as  they  could  without  int-ermission,  for  fear 
of  losing  any  of  the  beautiful  calm  weather  they  had.  It 
took  them  twelve  hours  to  make  the  trip  across.  The 
Father  was  then  on  his  way  to  visit  some  Christian  In- 
dians residing  at  Lake  Nipigon — "Animibigong"  in  Chip- 
pewa. For  the  particulars  of  this  journey  we  refer  the 
reader  to  "Missionary  Labors  of  Fathers  Marquette,  Al- 
louez,  and  Menard  in  the  Lake  Superior  Region." 

The  following  narrative  is  not  to  be  found  in  any  of 
Baraga's  published,  letters,  but  the  waiter  has  it  from  the 
mouth  of  trustworthy  persons,  among  whom  is  Father 
Chebul,  a  countryman  of  F.  Baraga,  who  was  stationed  at 
Bayfield  for  many  years.  We  will  give  the  account,  as  we 
have  it  from  Rev.  F.  Chebul. 

One  time  F.  Baraga  was  going  to  Ontonogan  in  com- 


*  -a 


'■  '!i;S 


I 


i!:i- 


'    l'  II 


>.   'I 


'  I 


1  ,  Ui 


;?{ 


222 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


])any  with  an  Indian  liall'-^n'cd  in  the  month  of  March  or 
April.  At  tliat  seas^on  of  tlic  year  the  icx',  tli<jugh  thick,  be- 
conu'H  honcy-conilu'd  and  rotten.  Some  say  that  Baraga's 
companion  was  a  man  named  Newagon.  1  hoy  went  on 
the  ice  at  La  Pointe  1  inland.  Aj?  tlie  walking  on  the  sandy 
iK'acli  would  have  been  very  fatiguing  and  long,  they  deter- 
mined to  nuike  straight  for  Ontonogan  over  the  ice.  By 
80  doing  they  would  not  only  have  Ixjtter  walking,  but  also 
bhorten  their  way  a  great  deal. 

A  strong  southwe.st  wind  was  l)lowing  at  the  time,  and 
the  ice,  becoming  detached  from  the  shore,  begaji  drifting 
lakeward.  After  tliey  had  traveled  for  some  time,  they 
became  aw^are  of  what  had  hai)]K'ned,  for  they  could  see 
the  blue  waters  l)etween  them  and  the  shore.  Newagon 
became  greatly  alanned,  for  almost  certain  death  stared 
them  in  the  face.  Had  the  wind  continued  blowing  in  the 
same  direction,  the  ice  would  have  been  driven  far  out  into 
the  lake  and  broken  up  into  small  fragments.  They  would 
surely  have  perished. 

To  encourage  the  drooping  spirit  of  his  companion,  F. 
Baraga  kept  telling  him  that  they  w^ould  escape  all  right 
and  that  they  must  trust  in  God,  their  loving  Father  and 
Protector.  He  also  sang  Chippewa  hymns  to  divert  Ne- 
wagon's  attention  and  calm  his  excitement  Finally  the 
wind  shifted  and  blew  the  field  of  ice  back  tcvards  the 
shore. 

They  landed  near  Cadotte  Point,  near  Union  Bay,  a 
short  distance  from  Ontonagan,  which  they  reached  that 
same  day.  '"See,"  said  the  missionai'y  to  his  companion, 
*'we  have  traveled  a  great  distance  and  have  worked  little." 
The  distance  from  La  Pointe  to  Ontonagan  is  about  sixty 
or  seventy  miles  by  an  air  line.  Had  they  been  obliged  to 
walk  the  w^hole  distance  around  the  bend  of  the  lake,  it 
would  probably  have  taken  them  two  or  three  days  of  very 
hard  and  fatiguing  traveling.  So  what  at  first  seemed  to 
threaten  certain  death  was  used  by  God's  fatherly  provi- 
dence to  shorten  and  facilitate  the  saintly  priest's  journey. 


HHHMMi 


CHAPTER  XXXVIJ 


FURTJIKR   TP:.STIiMONY  AS  TO   F.   BARAOa's   WORK   AT   i/aNSE. 
ACCIDENT  ON  LAKE  HURON  IN  1852. 


In  reading  Hon.  Ilichard  T{.  Elliott's  very  able  and 
interesting  article  in  the  ''American  Catholic  Quarterly 
Eeview,"  July,  1806,  entitled,  "Father  Baraga  Among  the 
Chippewas,"  we  found  a  letter  of  Hon.  Peter  White,  presi- 
dent of  the  First  X^ational  Bank  of  Ma.  quotte,  which 
s[)ea]cs  very  highly  of  Father  Baraga's  work  at  L'Anse. 
His  testimony  is  all  the  more  valuable  because  it  is  that  of 
a  man  in  high  social  standing,  who  knew  F.  Baraga  per- 
sonally. Moreover,  he  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  church  of  !\[arquette,  and  being  senior 
warden  of  that  church,  his  testimony  cannot  be  suspected 
of  partiality.    He  writes  (page  005  et  seq.)  : 

"I  first  knew  Bishop  Baraga  (at  the  time  Father 
Baraga)  at  L'Anse  in  1850.  His  residence  was  a  few 
miles  distant  from  the  location  of  the  present  town  of 
Baraga. 

"There  was  a  population  at  the  Roman  Catholic  mis- 
sion of  about  ^00  Chippewas,  100  or  more  half-breeds,  and 
from  twenty  to  thirty  Frenchmen,  who  had  inter-married 
with  Chippewa  Avomen. 

"Father  Baraga  was  the  devoted  friend  of  these  peo- 
ple; they  all  loved  him  and  almost  worshipped  him. 

"He  purchased  from  the  government  for  the  fawiiios 
of  his  mission-  a  tract  of  land  which  he  divided  intc*  IrrgG 
lots,  on  which  he  built  houses  for  each  family ;  he  ]'artly 
furnished  these  dAvellings,  and  gave  the  heads  of  eacli  a 


i(. 


1! 


1  ■    .vr  ■ 


224 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


'1;' 


I 


•I 


cooking  stove,  furniture,  clothing  and  a  supply  of  provi- 
sions to  commence  housekeeping  in  a  civilized  manner. 

"He  taught  them  to  read,  write,  and  to  sing,  and  how 
to  lead  Christian  lives.  lie  instructed  thera  as  to  the  ciil- 
•tivation  of  the  soil,  providing  them  with  seed  and  other 
requisites. 

"He  translated  portions  of  the  Bible  into  their  lan- 
guage, prayers,  and  hymns,  and  compiled  a  grammar, 
spelle",  and  reader  for  them,  and  had  these  separate  works 
in  the  Chippewa  language  piinted  at  his  own  expense. 

"He  provided  and  paid  a  teacher  to  instruct  the  In- 
dians and  their  child ^^n. 

"They  gathered  around  him  like  a  band  of  children 
and  listened  to  tlie  words  of  w'isdom  he  ahvays  had  ready 
for  them.  Should  any  of  them  become  sick,  he  provided 
a  physician  and  medicine. 

"He  had  probably  lived  among  these  Chippewas  dur- 
ing twenty  years,  ministering  to  their  spiritual  and  tem- 
poral welfare,  before  he  was  created  Bishop  of  Sault  de 
Ste.  Marie. 

"Occasionally  a  ^sick-call'  would  come  to  him  from 
Houghton,  Eagle  Eiver,  Eagle  Harbor,  the  Cliff  Mine,  the 
Old  Albion  Mine,  Houghton,  Eagle  River,  Eagle  Harbor, 
the  Cliff  Mine,  or  some  other  mining  location  on  Keweenaw 
Point. 

"I  have  known  him  to  respond  to  these  ^sick-calls'  in 
the  dead  of  winter,  alone  and  on  snow-shoes ;  very  labori- 
ous journeys  they  were,  full  of  peril  and  unlimited  hard- 
ship, and  undertaken  to -administer  the  last  rites  to  a  dying 
Christian. 

"For  years  there  was  no  other  priest  in  all  that  region. 

"The  houses  Father  Baraga  caused  to  be  built  for  the 
people  of  his  raission  were  not  large,  but  were  adequate 
to  their  condition  and  wants;  most  of  them  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  live  in  wigwams.  They  were  mostly  one  story 
or  one  and  a  half  stories  high,  with  ifood  windows  and 


^&"j 


S--1 


WMHMk^:-** 


THE   TITLE   TO  HIS   GRAMMAR. 


225 


doors,  but  enclosed  with  plain  boards ;  each  had  a  brick  or 
stone  chimney,  and  probably  cost  from  $500  to  $700,  while 
the  furniture  cost  did  not  exceed  $200  for  each. 

"I  cannot  give  you  the  size  of  the  lots,  but  they  were 
from  200  to  300  feet  square,  and  the  grantees  or  their  de- 
scendants still  occupy  them.  The  place  is  still  called  the 
**Koman  Catholic  Mission,"  but  its  population  has 
dwindled  down  to  about  a  third  of  its  former  number. 

**0n  the  opposite  shore  of  the  bay,  where,  at  a  corre- 
sponding period,  there  was  a  Methodist  Mission,  compris- 
ing many  souls,  not  more  than  150  remain.  I  have  one 
of  Bishop  Baraga's  grammars.    The  title  reads : 

;  ''A  Theoretical  and  Practical 

Grammar 

Of  the  Otchipwe  Language. 

Spoken  by  the  Chippewa  Indians;   Also  by  the  Algonquin,  Ottawa 

and  Pottawotomie  Indiana,  with  but  Little  Difference,  etc. 

By  Frederick  Baraga, 

Missionary  at  L'Anse,  Lake  Superior. 

Detroit : 

Jabez  Fox,  Printer. 

{  1850." 

"It  is  a  great  pleasure  to  me  to  be,  even  in  a  small  way. 
of  any  assistance  to  you  in  such  a  noble  task  as  you  have 
undertaken,  and  I  regret  not  being  able  to  give  you  some- 
thing better" 

The  follo'\\'ing  interesting  item  we  have  from  the  vet- 
eran editor  of  the  "Aurora,"  Hon.  Chr.  Wieckmann : 

In  the  winter  of  1852  Father  Baraga  went  all  the  way 
from  Mackinac  Island  to  Detroit  on  Lake  Huron  in  a 
sleigh  drawn  by  two  Indian  ponies.  He  had  be^jn  working 
at  his  Chippewa  dictionary  for  almost  ten  years  and  was 
anxious  to  get  it  printed  in  Detroit  at  the  printing  office 
of  the  "Aurora,"  which  was  then  still  small.  lie  accord- 
ingly sent  for  ^[r.  Wieckmann,  requesting  him  to  come  tx) 
Bishop   Lefevre's   residence.      Arriving   tliei*e,    he   found 


if 


;i  , '  ''3 


m 


h  '• 


\^ 


I  '    .;  ': 

.  I  ':■■  1 

■    '  '';!      ' 

!  '.■'■';i 


226 


BT.    BEV.    FBEDEBIC   BABAGA. 


Father  Baraga  spreading  out  sheet  after  sheet  of  his  man- 
usciipt-dictionary  to  dry.  He  told  Mr.  Wieckmann  that 
after  having  traveled  for  several  days  on  Lake  Huron  with 
his  Indian  companions  they  had  broken  through  the  ice  and 
the  entire  party  came  near  drowning.  As  often  as  the 
ponies  tried  to  climb  onto  the  ice  with  their  fore-feet,  the 
ice  would  break  off.  Finally,  after  hard  working  for  half 
an  hour,  they  succeded  in  getting  onto  strong  ice  again. 
But  as  a  gi-eat  part  of  the  journey  was  still  to  be  made, 
and  that  in  wet  clothes,  his  feet  were  frozen.  Father  Bar- 
aga told  him  ihat  he  had  been  more  solicitous  for  saving 
his  manuscript-dictionary  than  for  his  life.  It  was,  in- 
deed, most  fortunate  that  both  the  author  and  his  manu- 
script were  saved.  No  wonder  that  he  was  so  anxious 
about  saving  his  work.  It  had  cost  him  ten  years  of  hard 
labor.  Had  it  been  lost,  he  probably  would  never  again 
have  had  the  time  and  leisure  to  compose  another. 


Wi\^ 


'■ ', : 


1^:^ 


i 

n 


h  v:. 


:  {  i    Iv 

1   n- 


!'   I: 


i  M 


X 

iiri 


Ml 

m 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 


M>; 


FATHER    BARAGA    IN    DETROIT     SUPERINTENDING     THE    RE- 
PRINTING OF  SOME   OF   HIS   WORKS BISHOP   LEFEVRE 

GIVES    CONFIRMATION    FOR    THE    FIRST    TIME    IN 

L^ANSE THE  INDIANS  ALL  TAKE  THE  TOTAL 

.      ABSTINENCE  PLEDGF:. 


Under  date  of  September  18, 1846,  F.  Baraga  writes  to 
the  Leopoldine  Society : 

''With  much  plea3ure  aud  \^ith  a  grateful  heart  I  re- 
ceived your  Grace's  oominunication  of  the  2d  of  June  of 
this  year.     I  most  humbly  thank  your  Grace  for  the  600 
florins  sent  me,  which  in  American  coin  amount  to  $242.60. 
At  present  I  am  in  Detroit  and  have  beeen  here  for  the  last 
two  months.     The  reason  of  this  is  as  follows:     The  In- 
dian mission  books,  which  I  got  printed  in  Paris  in  1837, 
have  about  been  disposed  of.     Hence  the  necessity  of  get- 
ting a  new  edition  printed,   for  our  numerous  Indian 
missions  cannot  well  be  provided  for  without  these  little 
books,  as  many  Indians  can  now  I'ead  and  love  their  books 
of  devotion  very  much  and  make  good  use  of  them.     The 
missionaries,  who  labor  in  the  Indian  missions,  all  declare 
that  the  Christian  Indians  cannot  well  do  without  thera 
and  that  they  derive  great  benefit  from  them.     So  says 
especially  Father  Pierz,   who,   with   Father  Mrak,   has 
charge  of  the  most  populous  and  best  Indian  missions  of 
our  diocese.     I  have  caused  2,000  copies  oi  the  prayer- 
book  and  1,200  of  the  gospel-book  to  be  printed.     I  had 
400  catechisms  printed,  besides  the  prayei^books,  for  the 
use   of   Indian   children.     I   have   enlarged    the   prayer 


i'l 


228 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


hli 


I  .■ 


I  i;'(: 


book  very  much  in  this  third  edition  and  hav3  greatly  im- 
proved it. 

"As  regards  my  mission  at  L'Anse  I  have  good  and  con- 
soling news  to  write.  These  go<xl  Indians  have  taken  hold 
of  our  holy  religion  with  all  their  energy  a.nd  live  up  to  it 
faitlifully.  A  few  days  before  my  departure  this  mission 
had  the  happiness  and  honor  of  an  episcopal  visitation  for 
the  first  time.  The  Rt.  Rev.  Administrator  of  the  diocese 
of  Derroit,  jBishop  Lefevre,  was  there  in  July.  During 
the  few  days  he  spent  there  he  did  a  great  deal  of  good  to 
my  mission.  He  confirmed  a  great  number  of  Indians  in 
the  real  literal  sense  of  the  word.  His  presence,  his  ex- 
ceeding great  kindness  and  love,  and  his  edifying  exhorta- 
tions made  an  indelible  imj^ression  on  the  minds  of  these 
new  Christians. 
I  "Moreover,  he  organized  a  temperance  society  in  my 

mission,  to  which  all  who  by  reason  of  their  age  could  do  so, 
gave  their  names.  He  did  this  in  a  solemn  manner,  after 
divine  service.  It  was  an  edifying  and  consoling  sight. 
The  bishop  stood  in  his  pontificial  robes  at  the  communion 
railing  and  held  in  his  hand  the  temperance-pledge  leaf- 
lets, which  had  been  printed  in  the  Indian  language. 
Every  Indian  who  wished  to  become  a  member  of  the 
society,  came  forward,  knelt  before  the  bishop,  received 
his  blessing  and  received  the  leaflet  from  his  hands.  The 
following  words  were  printed  in  Indian  on  the  leaflets:  I, 
N.  N.,  renounce  entirely  and  forever  the  use  of  intoxicat- 
ing liquors,  and  I  pray  God  that  He  may  give  me  His  grace 
to  keej)  this  promise.'  All  Indians  of  my  mission  joyfully 
made  this  promise,  and  they  kept  it  faithfully. 

"Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Lefevre  also  baptized  five  grown 
pagans  r  L'Anse.  Tliey  were  the  last  baptized  Indians 
of  this  micSjjiv  1%  ♦:  there  are  frequent  baptisms  of  adults 
and  the  mission  keeps  growing  continually,  for  from  time 
to  time  };^:viT.s  .'om  ;  from  tbi;  inland  forests  and  settle 
down  net)    *  mm"  ielu/Ives  at  L'Anse  and  become  Christians. 


f 

;■- 

I 


HE  LONGS   TO  BE  HOME   AGAIN. 


229 


This  mission  gives  me  very  great  consolation,  for  which  I 
thank  God  daily.  Especially  does  it  please  mo  that  this 
mission  is  in  every  way  an  imitation  of  the  'Reductions/ 
which  the  good  ancient  Jesuits,  these  masters  in  missionary 
affairs,  made  in  Paraguay. 

"/  long  to  be  among  my  dear  children  again.  Tomor- 
row is  the  day  of  my  departure  from  Detroit.  How  glad 
these  good  children  will  be  to  again  see  their  father,  whom 
they  have  not  seen  for  the  last  two  months. 

"It  is  very  agreeable  that  the  Reverend  and  pious 
Pather  Otto  Skolla,  who  now  takes  my  place  in  La  Pointe 
has  developed  into  an  excellent  Indian  missionary.  He  ia 
very  much  beloved  in  his  mission  and  devotes  himself  with 
great  zeal  and  energy  to  the  study  of  the  Indian  language. 
I  hope  he  will  never  leave  the  Indian  mission.' 


j> 


'11 


i 


m 


I! ;! 


■\f  ^S 


t'   ! 

Uh    ■  . 

^■|  ^   . 

( 

i:.?U^5       !   -  ' 

,       1   ! 

i   !^^ 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

OPENING  OF  THE  COPPER  MINES  IN  NORTHERN  MICHIGAN. 

BARAGA  VISITS  HIS  NEW  MISSION. HE  LABORS  ON  HIS 

FAMOUS  CHIPPEWA  GRAMMAR  AND  DICTIONARY. 

The  mission  of  the  Most  Holy  Name  of  Jesus  at  L'  Anse 
(now  Baraga,  Assinins  P.  O.,  Baraga  Co.)  kept  growing 
continually,  though  slowly,  by  fresh  conversions  of  pagans 
eoming  from  the  interior  a.id  settling  lown  at  the  mission. 

Since  1845  F.  Baraga's  missionaiy  field  had  begun  to 
widen.  At  Portage  Lake  ind  elsewhere  on  Keweenaw 
Point  rich  copper  deposits  htd  been  discovered  and  were 
being  worked.  This  broup^t  a  great  many  whites  to  that 
formerly  wild  an*!  desolace  country,  a  great  number  of 
whom,  perhaps  the  majority,  were  Catholic  Irish,  Ger- 
mans and  French. 

On  tho  11th  of  Januaiy,  1847,  F.  Baraga  made  a  mis- 
sionary trip  to  the  mines  and  spent  three  weeks  there.  Ho 
was  astonished  at  the  rapid  growth  of  civilization  in  the 
Lake  Superior  country.  Instead  of  poor  Indian  wigwams 
he  found  beautiful  frame  houses  supplied  with  all  the  lux- 
uries of  civilization.  On  this  first  trip  to  the  mining  coun- 
try he  saw  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  Catholics  and  he 
says  there  were  many  more  elsewhere,  whom  he  had  not 
yet  visited.  In  going  from  one  place  to  another  the  misr 
sionary  was  obliged  to  travel  on  snow-shoes  and  carry  all 
things  necessary  for  divine  service.  lie  baptized  a  number 
of  children,  heard  confessions  almost  every  day,  and 
administered  Holy  Communion  to  a  great  majority  of  the 
people.  He  went  from  mine  to  mine  and  preached  almost 
every  evening  after  the  miners  had  fi.nished  their  day's 


AT   WORK  ON   A   NEW   DIOTIONABY. 


231 


work.  lie  spoke  in  English  at  times  or  in  German,  accord- 
ing to  the  nationality  of  his  hearers.  The  Germans  espec- 
ially were  highly  pleased  to  .^nd  a  priest  with  a  knowledge 
of  their  own  language  in  that  distant  country'.  On  the 
10th  of  May  he  made  another  missionary  trip  to  the  mines, 
which  took  about  three  weeks,  during  which  he  performed 
all  tJie  duties  of  the  ministry  with  great  fruit.  He 
promised  to  attend  these  scattering  missions  three  times  a 
yeaj*  until  the  people  would  obtain  a  resident  priest. 

Speaking  of  a  new  literary  work  he  had  taken  in  hand, 
he  writes  from  L'Anse  June  19  th,  1847,  to  the  Leopoldine 
Society : 

"I  desire  to  state  that,  in  accordance  with  the  wish  of 
my  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  and  my  fellow-missionaries,  I  have 
composed  a  complete  grammar  of  the  Chippewa  language, 
which  is  the  language  of  our  Indians  here.  It  has  cost  me  a 
great  deal  of  labour,  as  I  had  to  open  the  v  ,i  v  '^veiywhere 
since  no  grammar  of  this  language  has  hitu"  «  appeared. 
However,  as  I  have  been  studying  that  language  for  the 
past  seventeen  years,  I  was  able  to  finish  the  work,  with  the 
help  of  God. 

"I  am  also  composing  a  dictionary  of  the  language 
Otchipwe-French  and  F rencJi-Otchipwe.^  I  have  collected 
several  thousands  of  words,  and  I  shall  continue  at  the  work 
during  the  summer  and  autumn,  and  a  part  of  next  winter. 
Next  spring  I  intend  to  get  both  works  printed,  and  hope 
by  so  doing  to  procure  a  great  and  lasting  benefit  for  our 
missions,  which  are  scattered  over  three  dioceses.  For 
with  the  help  of  a  complete  and  systematic  grammar  illus- 
trating all  the  rules  with  numerous  examples,  and  with  a 
copious  dictionary  in  hand,  our  present  and  future  mis- 
sionaries, who  do  not  understand  much  Chippewa,  and  that 

•We  think  there  is  a  mistake  here.    Instead  of  Otchipwe  French 

and  jPrenc/i-Otchipwc,  the  reading   ought   to   be:    Otchipwe-.Bng'Hs/i 

and   /Jng^Msft-Otchipwe.     Baraga    wrote   his    Chippewa    grammar    in 

English,  and  it  is  natural  to  suppose  that  his  dictionary  was  also 

intended  for  English-speaking  readers. 


m 


.Ill 


232 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BABAGA. 


1  f/., 
:  hi- 


not  grammaticaJly,  will  Ix^  enabled  to  leara  this  curious, 
very  peculiar,  yet  systematic  and  beautiful  language,  in.  a 
short  time,  a  very  important  thing,  for  it  is  something 
quite  different  if  a  missionary  can  speak  with  the  Indians 
personally,  or  tc  be  obliged  txj  have  his  words  interpreted 
by  another. 

"Now  these  works  of  permanent  utility  to  our  Indian 
missions  will  certainly  be  ready  for  the  press  by  next 
spring,  if  the  Lord  prolongs  my  life.  But  there  is  a  cer- 
tain impediment  in  the  way,  which,  after  God,  only  the 
generosity  of  your  Lordship  can  remove.  The  printing  of 
these  works  will  cost  at  least  four  hundred  dollars,  which  I 
cannot  expect  from  anybody  else  than  your  Lordship.  If, 
therefore,  it  is  your  wish  and  that  of  the  Leopoldine  Society 
to  have  these  works  of  mine  published  for  the  good  of  our 
Indian  missions  I  most  humbly  pray  you  tC)  let  me  have  the 
above  sum  by  next  spring,  through  the  handa  of  our  Rt. 
Rev.  Bishop  of  Detroit,  under  whose  eyes  I  will  get  these 
books  pi'inted." 

"The  Catholic  Almanac,"  of  1848,  published  in  Balti- 
more says  (page  162,  Diocese  of  Detroit)  : 

"Frederic  Bar^i/a,  Vicar-general  of  the  Diocese  of  De- 
troit, and  a  most  v  oi-thy  missionary  priest,  opened  a  mis- 
sion at  L'Anse,  about  three  years  ago  amid  incredible  labor 
and  hardships.  He  has  built  a  church  and  school  house 
and  has  the  consolation  of  having  charge  of  more  than 
thirty-three  Chippewa  families,  which  he  himself  has  con- 
verted to  the  Catholic  faith,  and  he  has  the  assured  hope 
that  his  new  flock  will  be  increased  by  new  conversions. 
The  quick  advancement  in  ci  /ilization  and  prosperity  of 
these  Indians,  whose  missionii  have  been  lately  founded, 
has  become  a  subject  of  wonde;*  to  all  those  who  have  known 
L'Anse  these  last  two  years,  for  the  Indians  have  entirely 
abandoned  their  savage  customs,  w^ays,  and  irregular  mode 
of  life,  and  have  become  a  good,  industrious,  self-support- 
ing, honest  and  sober  class  of  people.     They  now  live  in 


curious, 
ge,  in  a 
iiething 
Indians 
rpreted 

Indian 
)y  next 
s  a  cer- 
nly  the 
Lting  of 
v^hich  I 

p.     If, 

Society 
of  our 
ive  the 
Mr  Rt. 
t  these 


INDIANS   WORKING   INDUSTRIOUSLY. 


23a 


decent  houses  and  work  their  land  industriously.  Each 
owns  about  thirty  inres  of  land  in  the  woods,  which  he 
clears,  that  is,  cuts  down  the  trees,  plants  it  and  surrounds 
it  with  a  fence  in  common  and  in  this  common  property 
every  head  of  a  family  has  a  lot,  which  is  plowed,  planted 
and  cultivated  according  to  each  one's  needs." 


Balti- 

>f  Be- 
a  mis- 
•■  labor 
house 
than 
s  con- 
hope 
sions. 
ty  of 
aded^ 
nown 
irely 
mode 
port- 
^e  in 


'u^\ 


CHAPTEF  XL. 

FATHER   BARAGA   GOES   TO   FOND  DU   LAC,   BAPTIZES    A   VERY 

OLD    AND    BLIND    WOMAN. SUFFERS    MUCH    HARDSHIP 

ON  HIS  RETURN  JOURNEY. 


■',■■'/ 

■I    ! 

'fl  i 

■  ■I 

,  i.'      ! 

'  • , 

■^  ! 

,, , 

1i 

%    'S 

f  •; 

n  I 

!■'' 

tl^t          >: 

;« 

■:l:sk  r 

V.tf 

.  ■■  '■?''  .' 

r« 

* 

In  a  letter,  dated  Copper  Harbor,  Mich.,  October 
18,  1847,  F.  Baraga  makes  the  following  reflections,  which 
■\ve  give  in  full  as  they  give  us  an  insight  into  the  boundless 
charity  of  this  holy  man  toward  the  poor,  abandoned  In- 
dians, and  his  burning  zeal  for  their  conversion  and  eternal 
salvation  : 

"...  And  now  some  news  about  my  missionary 
undertaking's.  I  am  on  the  way  to  Fond  du  Lac.  This 
is  a  mission  station  in  the  interior,  about  350  miles  from 
here.  I  have  been  there  before  as  appears  from  my  forme  j 
reports.  I  never  remained  there  longer  than  eight  or  ten 
days,  sometimes  only  three  or  four.  But  now  I  intend  to 
stay  in  that  mission  over  two  months.  In  order  to  instruct 
more  fully  in  religion  the  newly  converted,  and,  with  God's 
help,  to  bring  some  pagans  to  the  way  of  salvation. 

"Next  January  I  hope  to  return  to  my  mission  at 
L'Anse  on  snow  shoes.  It  was  with  difficulty  and  a  heavy 
heart  that  I  could  tear  myself  away  from  my  dear  children 
at  L'Anse.  Solely  tlie  spiritual  commiseration  with  the 
Indians  at  Fond  du  Lac,  who  complain  so  touchingly  of  the 
abandonment  in  which  they  live,  could  move  me  to  this 
resolution. 

"How  sad  it  is  to  have  so  few  missionaries  at  Lake 
Superior,  where  so  many  of  them  could  find  a  very  salutary 
occupation  unto  the  honor  of  God  and  the  salvation  of  souls, 
if  they  would  come  here  and  put  their  hands  to  work    .    .    . 


CONVEBSION   OP   AN   OLD   LADY. 


235 


I  entreat  most  earnestly  aJl  our  dear  niission  benefactors  to 
pray  often,  yes,  very  often,  in  the  Name  of  Jesus  to  the 
Lord  of  the  vineyard  that  lie  niav  send  some  hd>orers  into 
this  so  abandoned  part  of  liis  vineyard.  I  iiave  the  assured 
hope  that  such  a  universal  prayer  will  have  a  go^xl  effect.'' 

In  Octol>er,  1847,  F.  Baraga  went  from  Copper  Harbor 
to  Fond  du  Lac,  mo-t  probably  by  boat.  The  go(xl  people 
of  Fond  du  Lac  felt  excee<lingly  haj)py  to  again  meet  their 
missionary.  Duriu"'  his  stay  there  many  received  the 
grace  of  holy  Baptism.  It  was  a  particular  joy  to  him  to 
have  admitted  an  entire  j)agan  family  through  the  door  of 
Baptism  into  the  fold  of  the  Go(hI  Shepherd. 

Ho  was  especially  consoled  by  the  conversion  of  a  very 
old  pagiiii  wonuui  who  was  perhaps  ninety  years  of  age. 
When  he  arrived  at  Fond  du  Lac  he  heard  that  this  poor  old 
woman  was  very  weak  and  sick.  He  went,  therefore,  to  her 
wigwam  in  which  she  was  lying  quite  alone.  She  had  been 
abandoned  by  her  pagan  relatives,  who  went  far  into  the 
woods  to  winter  there.  She  was  alone  and  helpless  until  at 
last  a  Christian  family  took  pity  on  her,  cared  for  her. 
nourished  her,  and  kept  her  fire  burning  day  and  night. 

It  is  thus  pagan  Indians  at  times  acted  toward  their 
aged  parents  or  grand  parents  when  the  latter  became  so 
old  and  feeble  that  they  could  no  longer  help  themselves — 
they  simply  abandoned  them.  Should  this  happen  in  an 
Indian  village,  there  was  always  some  one  to  take  them  and 
care  for  tlieni  until  they  died.  This  was  generally  done 
by  Christian  families.  Barag'a  says  that  it  often  happened 
that  such  poor  old  creatures  were  abandoned  in  the  midst  of 
the  forest  by  their  own  children  and  grand-children,  in 
which  case  they  would  perish  miserably  from  starvation 
and  cold. 

So,  also,  this  poor  old  woman  had  been  forsaken,  but 
had  now  been  taken  in  and  caretl  for  by  a  Christian  family. 
When  Baraga  learned  tliat  she  had  been  long  sick,  he  deter- 
mined to  go  and  visit  her  and  try  to  save  this  poor  soul 


.fi]'- 


^,i'i 


iMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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1.0 


I.I 


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^  vs. 


1^  1^ 

IM 

2.0 


L25  III  U   i  1.6 


Photographic 

Sdences 
Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  145B0 

(716)  872-4503 


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\ 


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#• 


111 


236 


RT.   REV.    FREDEBIC   BARAGA. 


'\\: 


fr 


ii!'  1 


i\' 


1. 


I 


^'-  !• 


After  having  crawled  with  difficvilty  into  her  ver}'  small  and 
miserable  wigwam,  he  saluted  her.  The  Christian  Indian 
woman,  who  had  the  care  of  her  and  who  had  accompanied 
the  Father,  told  the  poor  old  creature  that  the  Blackrobe 
had  come  to  visit  her.  She  could  not  see  the  priest,  for  she 
V.  as  blind,  but  she  stretched  out  her  hands  tow^ards  him  and 
when  he  reached  his  hand  she  seized  it  with  both  her  hands 
and  exclaimed :  "Nosse,  nosse,  jaw^enimishin !"  "My 
father,  my  father,  have  pity  on  me!"  Baraga  compas- 
sionated her  abandoned  condition  and  then  spoke  to  her 
about  religion,  trying  to  make  her  understand  how  happy 
she  would  bo  in  the  other  world,  if  she  would  but  receive 
and  believe  the  word  of  the  Great  Spirit  and  receive  holy 
Baptism.  He  explained  to  her  the  principal  doctrines  of 
our  holy  religion  and  asked  her  from  time  to  time  whether 
she  understood  and  believed  what  he  told  her.  As  he  ^vas 
satisfied  from  her  answers  that  she  was  w^ell  disposed  he  in- 
tended to  baptize  her  immediately.  But  then  again,  be- 
lieving there  was  no  immediate  danger  he  thought  it  might 
perhaps  be  better  to  come  back  the  next  day  and  instruct 
her  a  little  more,  before  administering  Baptism.  On  leav- 
ing the  wigwam,  however,  his  first  thought  came  again, 
namely,  to  baptize  her  immediately,  which  he  did.  Yfhen 
he  came  home  it  w^as  late.  He  felt  very  happy  and  satis- 
fied thcit  he  had  baptized  the  poor  old  creature.  Early  the 
next  moniing  the  head  of  the  Christian  family,  that  had 
taken  care  of  her,  came  to  tell  Baraga  that  during  the  night 
the  good  old  woman  had  quietly  "fallen  asleep  in  the  Lord.^' 
Only  a  Christian  heart  can  imagine  the  unspeakable  joy, 
which  the  pious  missionary  felt  at  this  news.  He  thanked 
God  most  fervently  for  having  inspired  him  with  the 
thought  not  to  postpone  holy  Baptism  till  next  day,  as  he 
had  first  intended.  It  was  a  mysterious  disposition  of 
eternal  love,  whose  weak  instniment  he  considered  himself 
to  be,  which  wantetl  to  take  directly  this  poor  soul  to  the 
eternal   joys   of   heaven.     "Parcet   pauperi    et   inopi    et 


A   PERILOUS   HOMEWARD   TRIP. 


holy 


237 


aiiimas  j)auperiiiii  salvas  faciet."  ''lie  shall  spare  the  poor 
and  needy  and  lie  shall  save  the  souls  of  the  poor."  (Ps.  71, 
V.  13).  He  also  had  the  great  joy  of  admitting  to  their 
first  Holy  Communion  thirteen  poor  Indians,  whom  he  had 
diligently  prepared  for  that  lioly  Sacrament. 

Having  thus  consoled,  instructed,  and  confirmed  the 
poor  Indians  of  Fond  du  Lac  in  their  faith,  F.  Baraga  pre- 
pared to  retu.rn  to  L'Anse.  This  return  trip  was  full  of 
hardships  and  misery  for  the  pious  missionary,  especially 
hetween  Fond  du  Lac  and  La  Pointe.  He  remarks  that 
ho  had  made  manv  hard  missionary  iourneys,  but  that  this 
was  the  hardest  of  them  all.  At  other  times  he  made  the 
trip  from  Fond  du  Lac  to  La  Point  on  foot  in  four  days, 
but  this  time  it  took  him  seven  c-ays.  His  traveling  com- 
panion and  guide  through  the  pathless  forest  was  Louis 
Gaudin  (Gordon). 

They  set  out  from  Fond  du  Lac  about  the  5th  of 
December,  1847.  The  first  day  they  reached  a  point  on 
Lake  Superior,  l>etween  Superior  and  Bayfield,  called  in 
Chippewa,  Ga-Pakweiagak.  The  snow  was  then  but  six 
inches  deep.  They  camped  on  the  sandy  beach.  During 
the  night  it  snowed  very  hard  and  in  the  morning  they  were 
covered  with  a  thick  layer  of  snow,  for  about  one  foot  of 
snow  had  fallen,  that  night.  Hence  they  resolved  to  go 
straight  from  Ga-Pakweiagak  to  the  mouth  of  the  Sioux 
River.     IS'o  trail  could  be  seen  through  the  thick  forest. 

The  next  night  was  very  cold  and  Louis,  Baraga's 
guide,  caught  a  very  severe  cold  and  became  very  sick.  He 
could  not  sleep  all  night  and  kept  saying  all  the  time  that 
he  would  not  be  able  to  go  a  mile  further.  It  was  indeed 
a  sad  night !  They  were  far  aw^ay  from  any  human  habi- 
tation, in  a  dense  forest,  on  a  high  hill  or  ridge,  without 
any  trail.  They  could  not  afford  to  stay  there  long  as  their 
provisions  were  very  scarce.  Often  during  that  long,  cold 
night  F.  Baraga  thought  that  the  end  of  his  earthly  career 


K 


\ 
^'1 


1 


I ' 


lj  ■ 


Hi 


ii' 


^38 


ET.    REV.   FREDEBIO   BARAGA. 


was  perhaps  at  h.and,  which  certainly  would  have  been  the 
case  had  his  tmsty  guide  die<l. 

Such,  however,  w^as  not  the  wnll  of  the  Good  Shepherd 
who  still  wished  to  preserve  the  life  of  this  zealous  mis- 
sionary for  the  salvation  of  many  a  soul.  Louis  partly  re- 
cruited his  strength  so  that  he  could  rise  next  morning  and 
walk  slowly,  but  he  was  unable  to  carry  anything.  Hence 
Baraga  w^as  obliged  to  take  the  whole  pack  on  his  back  and 
carry  it  for  several  days  in  succession  through  the  deep 
snow  over  high  hills  and  through  low  valleys,  a  thing  very 
painful  to  one  not  accustomed  to  such  work.  But  Baraga 
was  satisfied,  if  only  his  guide,  upon  whom  all  depended, 
could  come  along. 

After  such  days  of  hardships  and  fatigue,  Baraga  was 
obliged  to  prepare  evei*ything  for  the  night's  camping  in  the 
open  air  with  no  other  covering  overhead  than  the  starry 
canopy  of  heaven.  He  was  obliged  to  chop  enough  wood 
to  keep  up  a  good  fire  during  the  long  night,  which,  at  that 
time  of  the  vear,  lasts  about  sixteen  hours  in  the  Lake 
Superior  region.  Baraga  had  never  chopped  wood  before, 
and  hence  this  exercise  must  have  been  very  painful  to  him 
especially  after  a  fatiguing  march  all  day  through  the  deep 
snow,  carrying  a  heavy  pack  upon  his  shoulders.  Their 
journey  was  slow,  for  Louis  was  very  weak.  Finally  they 
arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Sioux  River  where  they  made 
three  large  fires  to  attract  the  notice  of  the  people  of  La 
Pointe  Island  who  then  came  for  them  in  a  boat.  They 
had  been  a  whole  week  in  making  the  journey  from  Fond 
du  Lac  (Minn.)  to  La  Pointe. 

At  the  last  named  place  he  employed  another  man  to  go 
with  him  to  L'Anse,  as  l.,ouis  was  too  sick  and  feeble  to  go 
any  further.  The  distance  still  to  be  made  was  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  which  Baraga  made  in  four  days, 
although  he  had  to  carry  his  own  luggage. 

One  of  the  hardships  of  a  priest  on  these  long  winter 
journeys  was,  as  Baraga  remarks,  the  saying  of  the  office 


m:  i 


A  NOBLE  EXAMPLE  TO   FOLLOWi 


239 


or  breviary.  This  could  not  be  done  during  the  day-time, 
As  the  days  are  very  short,  a  perbon  tries  to  travel  as  far  as 
possible.  .Hence  the  missionary  has  to  say  his  breviary 
early  in  the  morning  before  day  break  and  in  the  evening 
after  the  day's  journey  is  ended,  when  he  has  no  other  light 
than  that  of  the  camp  fire. 

What  a  noble  example  for  all  priests !  We  see  here  a 
poor  Indian  missionary  traveling  all  day  through  snow  and 
cold  and  ice,  fatigued  and  tired  with  walking  and  carrying 
a  heavy  pack  all  day,  and  yet  saving  his  office  out  in  the 
cold,  open  air  before  a  camp  fire,  shivering  with  cold. 
Yes,  truly  Father  Baraga  was  made  of  the  material  that 
saints  are  made  of !    Baragr  concludes : 

"Having  returned  to  my  mission  here,  I  found  every- 
thing in  the  best  of  order,  although  I  had  been  absent  three 
montlis.  During  my  absence  the  Indians  assembled  on  all 
Sundays  and  holy  days  in  the  church,  both  in  the  morning 
and  afternoon,  and  performed  their  prayers  and  singing  in 
common  as  I  had  recommended  them  to  do.  I  live  here 
satisfied  and  grateful,  loving  and  beloved  as  a  father 
amongst  his  children,  for  which  I  thank  God  in  the  Name 
of  Jesus.'* 


■^  I N' 


ll;i! 
^ 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

CONTINUATION  OF  F.   BARAGa's   LABORS  AT   l'aNSE   IN   1848 

AND  1849. ''the  new  YORK  OBSERVErV  ESTIMATE 

OF  HIS  WORK. HARDSHIPS  AND  DANGERS. 


Scarcely  had  F.  Baraga  returned  from  Fond  du  Lac,  as 
related  in  the  forgoing  chapter,  when  his  restless  zeal  for 
the  good  of  souls  urged  him  to  visit  the  scattered  Catholic^ 
of  the  mining  country.  Great  was  the  joy  of  the  good 
people  when  they  again  beheld  their  common  father  and 
pastor.  It  was  seldom  he  could  visit  them  for  his  territory 
was  large.  For  several  years  Fathers  Skolla,  Baraga,  and 
Mrak  were  the  only  priests  in  IS^orthern  Wisconsin,  East- 
ern ^^linnesota,  and  the  K^orthem  peninsula  of  Michigan. 

The  white  settlers  at  the  mines  wished  very  much  to 
have  a  priest  of  their  own,  whom  they  could  well  support, 
and  they  asked  F.  Baraga  to  request  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop 
Lefevre  to  send  them  one,  hut  the  latter  answered  that  with 
the  best  will  he  could  not  give  them  a  priest,  as  he  had  none 
to  spare.  The  foremen  at  the  mines,  although  for  the 
most  part  non-Catholics,  being  generally  men  of  no  partic- 
ular religion,  were  also  desirous  of  having  a  priest  stationed 
at  the  mines,  knowing  from  experience  the  immense  influ- 
ence for  good  which  a  worthy  priest  wields  amongst  his 
people.  As  to  the  public  esteem  in  which  F.  Baraga  was 
held  by  all  classes  of  people,  Protestants  as  well  as  Cath- 
olics, and  of  the  great  influence  exerted  by  him  and  other 
Indian  missionaries,  we  will  give  an  extract  taken  from  a 
politicial  paper  of  that  time  called  "The  New  York  Obser- 
ver/^    The  writer  remarks : 

"To  the  most  common  observer  it  is  not  difficult  to 


ii'i.ii 


im 


AN   editor's   noble   TBIBUTE. 


241 


assi^  tlie  reasons  Avhy  Catholics  have  such  good  success. 
The  number  of  Catholic  whitx?s  marrieu  to  Indian  women 
is  greater  than  that  of  Protestant,  Through  this  kind  of 
influence  the  confidence  of  the  Indians  is  more  easily 
gained  than  through  any  other.  The  children  of  such 
marriages  are  a  sure  gain.  The  way  to  gain  a  ready  hear- 
ing on  tJie  part  of  the  relatives  is  thus  also  facilitated. 

"Another  reason  is  this,  that  it  is  more  apparent  in  a 
Catholic  missionary  that  he  devotes  himself  wholly  and 
entirely  to  the  cause  which  he  promotes,  since  he  labors 
continually  for  others,  since  he  fearlessly  exposes  his  health 
to  danger  in  the  service  of  the  sick  and  dying,  and  since  he 
is  more  willing  at  all  times  to  suffer  privation. 

"An  example  of  this  kind  is  told  of  Father  Baraga  at 
Keweenaw  Point,  a  man.  almost*  sixty  years  old,  who 
devotes  the  whole  of  his  large  income, f  as  also  his  personal 
services  to  the  cause,  he  has  taken  upon  himself  and 
receives  no  compensation  for  tlie  same.  Last  winter  he 
went  on  snow  shoes  from  L'Anse  to  Copper  Harbor,  a 
distance  of  fifty-seven  miles,:]:  through  an  uninhabited  re- 
gion, solely  to  baptize  a  child,  of  whom  he  had  heard  that  it 
would  probably  die.  Such  proofs  of  self-sacrifice  are  not 
without  influence  on  the  observant  mind  of  the  Indian. 

"The  Catholic  missionary'^  is  everywhere  at  home, 
wherever  he  happens  to  be.  Neither  wife  nor  children  are 
placed  in  a  disagreeable  position,  when  the  night  overtake© 
him  in  an  Indian  wigwam.     He  partakes  with  gratitude 


***I  am  fifty-one  years  old,  but  my  almost  eighteen  years  of  mis- 
sio  lary  service,  and  especially  my  difficult  winter-trips,  have  used 
me  up  considerably,  so  that  many  people,  when  they  saw  me  for  the 
first  time,  took  me  for  a  man  of  sixty  years.  All  for  the  greater 
honoi  of  God." 

f'The  kind  contributions  for  r.y  support,  which  the  Leopoldine 
Society  sends  me  from  time  to  time." 

J"I  perform  also  other  missionary  duties.  It  is,  however,  cer- 
tain that  I  myself,  and  every  Catholic  missionary,  would  be  willing 
to  travel,  not  only  fifty-seven  miles,  but  also  570,  solely  to  procure 
eternal  happiness  through  Holy  Baptism  for  one  single  immortal, 
infinitely  precious  soul." 


f '• 


tr 


11   i  :. 

f :    :  i . 


m 


i 

1        ; 

t 
1 

ill 

1      !' J 

1 

f 

i 

:; 

1  1 1 

if 

''I  !j- 


''ii 


!:  i'-^ 


ii! 


2i2 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


of  tlioir  homely  meals  and  seeks  nothing  better.     Ho  lies 
down  on  their  mat  to  rc^t  and  thanks  his  Savior  that  he 
is  so  well  provided  for.     Ho  does  not  waste  a  fuU  half  of 
Jris  precious  time  in  enjoying  the  pleasures  of  life,  nor  in 
the  fulfillment  of  household  duties,  or  in  the  caro  of  an 
ever-increasing  family,  but  through  his  simple  and  self- 
sacrificing  mode  of  life,  he  gains  entrance  into  the  hearts  of 
the  savages  and  then  their  obedience  is  easily  gained  to 
the    requirements    of    the    Koman    Church.     Doctrines,, 
which  are  taught  by  visible  signr,  are  easier  understood  by 
simple  people  than  moral  explanations,  no  matter  in  what 
form  of  words  they  may  be  clothed." 

In  regard  to  publishing  his  Chippewa  grammar  and 
dictionar}',  F.  Baraga  felt  some  uneasiness,  as  he  had  no 
funds  of  his  own  wherewith  to  defray  the  printing 
expenses.  He,  therefore,  wrote  as  follows  to  his  old  stand- 
by, the  Leopold ine  Society: 

"I  now  take  the  liberty  of  speaking  again  of  an  affair 
that  may  be  of  some  importance  to  our  Indian  missions. 
I  wrote  in  one  of  my  reports  to  your  Princely  Highness, 
(L'Anse,  June  19th,  1847)  to  kindly  send  me  some  pecun- 
iary assistance  for  printing  an  Indian  grammar  and 
dictionary,  as  I  intend  to  publish,  both  these  works  in 
Detroit,  for  the  benefit  of  future  missionaries.  I  men- 
tioned to  Your  Grace  that  I  thought  four  hundred  dollars 
would  suffice  for  printing  both  works.  But  1  now  perceive 
that  the  dictionary  alone,  at  which.  I  am  still  working,  will 
bo  so  large,  that  after  the  printing  expenses  are  paid,  not 
much  will  be  left  of  the  above  named  sum.  I  therefore, 
most  respectfully  ask  of  the  most  Rev.  Directors  to  allow 
mo  six  hundred  dollars  for  the  printing  of  both  works,  and 
to  forward  the  same  through  the  hands  of  my  Rt.  Rev. 
Bi.shop." 

The  above  named  Society  sent  him  a  thousand  florins 
and  tw'o  boxes  of  church  ornaments  and  goods  for  his 
missions. 


liii'. 
!iitii: 

ill    ! 

I  ii'' 


HIS    MISSION    AT   L'ANSE   PROSPERS. 


213 


In  Augii8t,  1849,  we  find  F.  Baraga  again  superintend- 
ing the  printing  of  a  new  and  large  editic.i  of  the 
Chippewa  prayer  book.  lie  received  one  tliousand  florins 
(about  $480.00)  from  the  Leopoldine  Society,  and  this 
ajnount,  along  with  some  private  donations,  enabled  hira 
to  pay  for  this  new  edition.  These  most  useful  prayer 
books  were,  of  course,  gratuitously  distributed  all  over  the 
Indian  country  in  the  XorthwCvSt,  not  only  in  the  States 
bordering  on  our  great  lakes,  but  also  in  Canada  amongst 
the  many  Indians  converted  by  the  zealous  Jesuit  and 
Oblate  Fathers. 

Father  Baraga  \vTites,  L'Anse,  August  25th,  1849 : 
"Indians  love  their  prayer  books  very  much  and  wherever 
they  go  the  prayer  book  must  go  along,  that  evenings 
when  they  have  camped  they  may  read  in  them  and  sing. 
I  have  seen  Indians  who  on  their  death  bed  requested,  as 
a  particular  favor,  that  after  their  death,  their  prayer  book 
might  be  put  on  their  breast  in  the  coffin,  that  on  the  day 
of  judgment  they  might  appear  before  the  judgment  seat 
of  Jesus  with  their  prayer  books  as  it  were  in  their  hands." 

Speaking  of  the  state  of  his  missions  he  says  in  the  same 
letter : 

"My  mission  at  L'Anse  prospers  and  increases  as  time 
goes  on.  The  converts  are  steadfast  and  faithful  in  the 
fulfillment  of  all  Christian  duties.  I  admire,  especially 
the  resoluteness  with  which  they  resist  all  temp- 
tations and  occasions  of  relapsing  into  the  vice  of  drunken- 
ness, to  which  they  were  so  much  addicted  before  their 
conversion.  They  are  admired  universally  by  the  whites, 
who  are  aware  of  this  fact.  Many  of  these  Indians  were 
tempted  to  drunkenness  by  the  offer  of  considerable 
presents,  but  they  would  rather  relinquish  all  presents  than 
take  a  single  glass  of  intoxicating  liquor.  Others  were 
threatened  by  mean,  unscrupulous  whites  with  blows,  if 
they  would  not  drink,  but  they  would  rather  expose  them- 
selves to  the  danger  of  being  maltreated  by  these  miscreants 


1^ 


l« 


II  .■I.I.I 


!    ,^ 


lllll.,, 


i!lii. 


244 


liT.    AEV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


than  to  that  of  rflapHiii^  into  the  vice  of  (Irunkeiuiess. 
They  now  hato  dnuikenncs.*  just  as  niiich  as  they  loved  this 
vice  before  their  conversion.     Tlianks  bc»  to  Go<l ! 

In  regard  t(^  industrionsness  a  great  and  salutary 
change  has  been  effected  amongst  these  poor  children  of 
nature  by  the  holy  religion  of  Jesus,  a  religion  which  com- 
nwuids  us  to  tuo/'k  and  pray.  Before  their  conversion  they 
were  lazy,  as  all  wild  Indians  are.  The  poor  women  had 
to  do  all  the  work,  chop  wmxkI  and  carry  it  home  (on  their 
backs),  raise  jH)tatoes  and  dig  them,  etc.  The  men  did 
nothing  but  hunt  and  spend  often  whole  days  lying  in  their 
miserable  wigwams  (smoking).  But  now  these  men  have 
become  industrious  laborers.  They  work  industriously  on 
their  ever  increasing  j)atehes  of  land  and  live  in  good 
houses,  keep  poultry  and  already  some  have  cows  and  oxen. 
They  continually  make  considerable  ))rogi*ess  in  industry 
and  economy. 

''How  true  it  is  that  the  Christiaji  religion  is  capable  of 
civilizing  barbarous  nations  and  of  making  them  tempo- 
rally and  eteraally  happy.    IIow  often  has  not  our  govern- 
ment tried  with  tinily  well-meant  human,  but  often  mis- 
taken, means  to  civilize  these  Indians  and  make  them 
happy,  but  in  vain.     They  sought  to  build  without  the  Lord 
and  tliey  labored  in  vain.     But  as  soon  as  the  missionaries 
came  among  these  Indians,  and  that  they  had  submitted 
their  free,  wild  necks  to  the  sweet  yoke  of  Jesus,  then  all 
good  followed  of  itself.     The  holy.  Christian  religion  had 
here  as  everywhere  else  all  temporal  blessings  in  her  train. 
Americans  belonging  to  no  particular  religion  are  begin- 
ning to  understand  and  appreciate  this  fact  and  give  to  the, 
Catholic  missionary,  before  all  others,  the  prize  in  cultivat- 
ing, civilizing,  and  making  happy  the  Indian.     They  give 
expression  to  this  their  conviction  on  every  occasion,  both 
orally  and  in  writing  to  the  honor  of  our  holy  Catholic 
religion,  which  through  this  very  fact  reveals  her  divine 
origin  and  tnith." 


A   WINTER  TBIP   ALL   ALOMB. 


245 


In  tho  same  letter  the  zealous  misvsionary  says  that  he 
made  again  Home  arduous,  but  consoling  mission  trips. 
These  winter  journey's  were  lx)th  fatiguing  and  dangerous! 
on  account  of  the  intense  cold  and  det^p  snow.  In  Fel^ 
ruary,  1849,  ho  made  a  niissionarv  journey,  which  did 
much  good,  but  on  which  ho  was  twice  in  danger  of  losing 
his  life, 

Ab  he  knew  the  road  well,  he  went  quite  alone,  carry- 
ing on  his  back  his  satchel  with  all  things  neces8ai*y  for 
divine  service  at  the  different  missions  ho  intended  to  visit. 
At  first  evervthing  went  well.  The  snow  was  somewhat 
trodden  douTi  and  his  snow-shoes  were  light.  He  visited 
several  small  mining  towns,  preaching,  baptizing,  and  per- 
forming all  other  priestly  functions.  One  day  he  started 
to  go  to  a  place  about  ten  m.lles  distant.  The  day  before  it 
had  snowed  heavily,  making  traveling  exceedingly  diffi- 
cult Oftentimes  the  road  was  so  deeply  coverefl  that  it 
could  hardly  be  made  out.  The  good  Father  soon  perceived 
that  it  would  be  a  terrible  undertaking  to  proceed  on  his 
way  to  the  settlement,  but  as  he  had  already  travele  \  some 
distance,  he  was  unwilling  to  turn  back.  The  settlement 
was  situated  on  a  high  hill  and  the  way  to  it  led  over  high 
hills  and  through  deep  valleys.  The  snow  before  him  was 
getting  deeper  and  deeper.  As  it  was  yet  fresh,  it  was  so 
soft  that  at  each  step  he  sank  in  and  could  only  with  great 
difficulty  pull  his  foot  out  of  the  hole  made  in  the  snow  at 
ea.ch  step  he  took.  As  ever^'one  knows,  nothing  is  more 
fatiguing  than  wading  through  deep  snow.  When  the  good 
Father  had  thus  been  toiling  along  for  tliree  hours  his 
strength  began  to  give  way.  But  his  courage  and  confi- 
dence in  the  help  of  the  Good  Shepherd,  after  whose  lost 
sheep  he  was  going,  animated  him  to  pursue  his  journey. 
Every  little  while  he  would  rest  a  few  moments  and  then 
continue  his  wearisome  journey.  But  soon  his  weakness 
increased  to  such  an  extent  that  he  could  no  longer  carry 
his  pack.    He  hung  it,  therefore,  on  a  tree  and  waded  on, 


i.«in( 


w- 


i  i; 


II  i"" 


1*1 


r<  '•• .! 


i  I 


i'i 


i^ 


246 


RT.   RBV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


but  ovory  momoiit  slower  and  slower.  Nature  could  hardly 
hold  out  mucli  longer.  At  last  lie  could  scarcely  pull  his 
foot  out  of  tho  deej)  snow  whenever  he  nuide  a  step.  Espe- 
cially was  it  liard  for  th(^  ])o<>r  j)riest  when  the  road  wont 
uphill.  Often  he  tin  night  he  would  sink  down  in  the  snow 
and  })ori8h.  J  lad  he  lain  down,  he  certainly  would  have 
frozen  to  death  in  a  short  time,  for  it  was  exceedingly  cold 
and  ho  was  too  weak  and  exhaust (h1  to  gather  wood  and 
make  a  fire.  So  he  kept  on  dragging  himself  along,  rest- 
ing every  few  steps  he  made.  At  last  he  had  arrived  within 
two  miles  of  the  place  to  which  he  was  going.  But  he  was 
so  weak  now  that  it  took  him  almost  three  hours  to  walk 
that  short  distance. 

When  ho  left  in  the  morning  ho  had  expected  to  arrive 
at  tlie  end  of  his  journey  by  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning. 
But  he  did  not  arrive  till  about  five  in  the  afternoon.  The 
kind  inhabitants  of  tho  place  wondered  and  pitied  him 
very  much  when  they  saw  him  so  weak  and  exhausted. 
Next  morning  they  immediately  sent  a  young  man  for  his 
pack,  which  ho  liad  left  hanging  on  a  tree.  Although  this 
journey  had  nearly  cost  his  life,  yet  he  felt  amply  rewarded 
through  the  good  use  the  poor  people  made  of  his  visit. 

The  second  time  F.  Baraga  was  in  great  danger  of 
losing  his  life  was  when  he  returned  homeward  after  hav- 
ing visited  the  various  missions  at  the  mines.  He  was 
again  traveling  entirely  alone,  and  was  obliged  to  walk 
thirty  miles  to  get  to  the  first  house  on  his  way.  However, 
he  prefered  to  walk  that  whole  distance  in  one  day  than 
spend  tbe  night  in  the  open  air  sleeping  on  the  snow,  a 
thing  that  he  greatly  dreaded.  But  this  journey,  this  walk 
of  thirty  miles,  was  again  connected  with  fearful  hard- 
ships. Early  in  the  morning,  the  moon  yet  shining,  he 
set  out  on  his  journey.  At  first  things  went  well,  for  his 
way  lay  through  the  woods,  where  he  was  sheltered  from 
the  ccld  wind.  But  when  he  came  out  of  the  woods  his  way 
was  over  large  frozen  lakes,  and  the  wind,  which  blew 


FOURTH    EDITION   OF   HIS    PRAYUt   BOOK. 


247 


ntraiplit  into  his  face,  brvamo  stroiip^or  and  strongof,  till  it 
Ixvanio  a  poi'fcK't  stonn.  It  bhnv  so  hanl  that  at  tini(\s  he 
oouKl  har<l!y  make  a  sto])  fonvanl.  T\w  wind  was  so  in- 
twisely  oold  tJiat  it  throatpiufl  to  frw/c  the  very  1)1(kk1  in 
his  veins — ihv-fi^  aro  his  own  words.  He  eould  make  but 
slow  headway  against  the  stronp;,  emitting,  ioy  wind.  At 
timers  he  lost  the  trail.  As  to  a  road,  there  was  n«)ne,  every 
foot  of  the  ground  was  eovefini  with  snow.  All  ho  eould 
do  was  to  walk  on.  But  it  was  dilf^i-ult  to  keep  tho  straight 
direction,  for  many  a  time  he  eon  id  not  s<»o  ten  paex}s  ahead. 
Tho  strong  wind  raise<l  tlu^  ligbt  snow  in  elouds  around 
him.    It  was  indeed  a  fearful  walk. 

Through  tliis  storm,  against  this  icy,  cutting  wind  he 
had  to  make  his  way  seventeen  miles,  on  snow-shoes!  He 
remarks  that  if  a  weakness  had  come  upon  him,  so  that  he 
would  have  been  obliged  to  res*;  even  but  for  half  an  hour, 
he  would  have  frozen  to  death.  Tie  tells  how  some  French- 
Canadians  had  their  ears  and  noses  frozen  on  that 
awful  dav.  Thanks  be  to  God,  no  misfortune  of  that  kind 
happened  to  the  Father,  but  after  he  arrived  home,  the  skiu 
of  his  face  pealed  off.     He  remarks : 

"These  mission  journeys  are  indeed  very  hard,  but  also 
very  fruitful  for  the  honor  of  God  and  the  salvation  of 
souls.  It  is  this  consideration  that  consoles  and  upholds 
the  missionary.  In  the  very  midst  of  the  stonn  I  some- 
times laughed  at  myself  when  the  wind  blew  very  strong 
and  almost  threw  me  down.  Thanks  be  to  God  for  all! 
May  all  result  to  His  divine  honor  and  to  our  salvation !" 
In  a  later  letter,  dated  September  30th,  1849,  F. 
Baraga  mentions  that  he  had  completed  the  fourth  (en- 
larged) edition  of  his  Indian  prayer  book  and  his  Indian 
dictionary.  He  had  3,500  copies  of  said  prayer  book 
printed.  The  cost  of  printing  and  binding  amounted  to 
six  hundred  dollars.  He  received  from  the  Leopoldine 
Society  three  hundred  and  ninety-one  dollars,  and  the  bal- 
ance of  the  expenses  was  covered  by  donations  from  gener- 


m 


"<  I 


III  j^:! 


■U.       ■     ]! 


m 


, , .  1 


248 


BT.  BEY.   FBBDBBIO  BABAGA. 


0U3  benefactors.  He  mentions  that  at  his  departure  from 
Detroit  his  life  was  saved  only  through  a  special  protection 
of  God. 

"On  the  25th  of  this  month  (September,  1849)  I  set 
out  from  Detroit  to  return  to  my  mission.  But  on  the 
second  day  of  our  voyage  on  Lake  Huron  such  a  great 
storm  came  upon  us  that  our  steamer  was  almost  in  danger 
of  foundering.  The  boat  crew  said  that  they  had  never 
seen  such  a  storm  on  that  lake.  They  cast  about  one^half 
of  the  freight  overboai*d,  and  only  by  so  doing  could  we  be 
saved.  We  then  sailed  for  land  in  order  to  save  our  lives. 
When  throwing  the  lading  overboard,  they  reserved  about 
twenty  barrels  of  fresh  pork.  They  opened  barrel  after 
barrel  and  threw  the  pork  ini>o  the  fire  to  make  the  steam- 
boat go  faster.  When  at  lengtli  we  landed  at  a  good  har- 
bor, the  sailors  noticed  that  the  boiler  had  a  large  hole  in 
the  botto]m.  They  could  not  proceed  further  with  the  boat. 
I,  therefore,  left  them  and  got  aboard  another  steamboat, 
which  was  sailing  by,  and  caue  back  to  Detroit,  from 
which  place  I  hope  to  st-art  in  a  few  days  and  return,  with 
the  help  of  God,  to  my  mission." 


1  !':!■ 
;;,vi  ■ 


I 


r!  I 

[i   ! 


II 


ill 


CHAPTER   LXII. 

LETTER  OF  RT.  RKV.  PETER  PAUL  LEFEVRE^  BISHOP  OF  DE- 
TROIT. F.  BARAGA  GETS  HIS  GRAMMAR  AND  INSTRUC- 
TION BOOK  FOR  THE  INDIANS  PRINTED  IN  DETROIT. 
NEW  LABORS.  HIS  TERRIBLE  JOURNEY  IN  THE  WINTER 
OF  1850-1851. 


We  give  the  following  letter  of  the  Rt.  Rev.  Peter  Paul 
Lefevre,  Coadjutor-Bishop  and  Administrator  of  the  Dion- 
cese  of  Detroit,  in  full,  as  it  contains  his  opinion  as  to  the 
state  of  Baraga's  missions.  The  Bishop  writes  as  follows 
to  the  Leopoldine  Society : 

Detroit,  June  20,  1850. 
^'Your  Princely  Highness — I  duly  received,  before  my 
departure  to  the  Indian  missions,  Your  Lordship's  letter 
of  the  15th  of  March  of  this  vear.  Sincerelv  and  from  the 
bottom  of  my  heart  do  I  thank  Your  Princely  Highnesa 
and  all  the  mission  benefactors  in  the  Austrian  empire  for 
the  great  and  numerous  benefits  ^dth  which  Your  High- 
ness comes  to  our  assistance.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  me  to  be 
able  to  inform  you  that  the  amount  which  Your  Lordship 
procured  for  us  was  of  far  greater  utility  to  us  than  that 
of  the  last  years.  For  the  two  thousand  florins  C.  M.,  or 
one  hundred  and  seventy-four  pound  sterling,  I  received 
$854.52.  I  have  not  as  yet  taken  the  money,  but  as  soon 
as  I  shall  have  done  so  I  shall  give  one-half  of  it,  as  Your 
Lordship  wishes,  to  Rev.  Frederic  Baraga.  He  is  just 
now  here,  busy  with  the  publishing  of  some  of  his  mission 
works.  He  will  stay  here  for  a  considerable  time,  for  he 
is  harv^ing  two  works  printed,  each  of  which,  as  he  says,  will 


.4'  , 


'I'M 


JL- 


i)' 


I'M 

*i  I :  liji 


1, 


I.'  J' 


i 


^ii 


h     I' 


1  PI 


if 


sii    ■"'■' 
1:     ' ':! 

li     ■' 


.1  :  ', 


;i,i|;H'!' 


i!ii 


I'         !' 


1^ 


nil! 


250 


RT     REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


contain  over  six  hundred  pages.  His  Indian  grammar 
will  be  very  welcome  to  our  Indian  missionaries.  It  will 
be  very  useful  to  them  to  aid  them  in  learning  the  Indian 
language,  a  thing  absolutely  necessary  to  them. 

''It  is  only  a  few  days  ago  since  I  returned  from  the 
Indian  missions,  in  which  I  spent  six  weeks.  I  have  also 
visited  the  mission  of  Rev.  Earaga  at  L'Anse  and  have 
administered  the  sacrament  of  confirmation  to  many  In- 
dians of  his  flourishing  and  steadily  increasing  mission. 
I  have  always  much  consolation  and  spiritual  joy  when- 
ever I  go  to  the  Indian  missions.  It  is,  indeed,  consoling 
to  see  how  these  poor  children  of  the  forest,  who  until  re- 
cently lived  in  the  most  horrible  vices  of  paganism,  are 
now  God-fearing  Christians  and  far  surpass  the  whites  in 
devotion,  in  faith,  and  in  the  fulfillment  of  their  Christian 
duties.  As  often  as  I  visit  these  missions  I  think  that  the 
life  of  a  missionary  is  at  times  really  hard  and  disagree- 
able, but  at  the  same  time  very  consoling  and  full  of  re- 
ward, since  he  sees  immediately  the  fruit  of  his  labors,  and 
after  the  toil  of  planting  comes  immediately  the  joyful 
time  of  reaping.  "Seminant  missionarii  flentes  et  gemen- 
tes,  sed  statim  laetantes  veniunt  portantes  manipulossuos — 
the  missionaries  sow  w^eeping  and  sighing,  but  immediately 
they  come  bearing  their  sheaves." 

During  his  two  and  a  half  months'  stay  in  Detroit,  in 
the  summer  of  1850,  F.  Baraga  worked,  as  it  were,  day 
and  night  at  superintending  the  printing  of  two  of  his 
works,  each  of  which  shows  his  profound  erudition  and  ex- 
alted pjety.  His  Indian  grammar  is  a  masterly  work  of 
linguistic  learning.  When  we  consider  that  nine-tenths  of 
all  Chippewa  words  are  either  verbs  or  reducible  to  verbs, 
and  that  these  verbs  have  thousands  of  terminations  ex- 
pressive of  every  shade  of  meaning,  and  that  Baraga  was 
obliged  to  learn  all  these  countless  terminations  by  patient 
inquiries  from  people  who  have  no  more  idea  of  grammar 
"than  the  man  in  the  moon,"  we  are  struck  with  astonis-h- 


STANDS   FIRST   AS   AN   INDIAN    LINGUIST. 


251 


ment  and  wonder  at  the  genius,  learning,  and  herculean 
labor  of  the  man.  As  Indian  linguist  he  occupies  the  first 
place  amongst  all  scholars  of  Indian  languages.  We  do 
not,  of  course,  mean  to  assert  that  no  white  man  could 
speak  Chippewa  better  than  Baraga.  There  may  be  such. 
But  we  confidently  assert  that  no  known  writer  had  sucli 
a  full,  scientific,  systematic  knowledge  of  the  language  as 
he  had.  Of  that  his  grammar  and  dictionary  are  the  best 
proofs.  In  the  appendix  we  will  note  a  few  of  the  many 
peculiarities  and  difiiculties  of  the  Chippewa  language. 

As  to  the  second  work,  spoken  of  above,  it  also  8ha^vs 
the  wonderful  ability  of  its  author.  It  is  written  with 
deamess  and  perspicuity.  The  language  is  simple,  the 
range  of  words  very  limited,  only  those  being  employed 
which  are  in  frequent  use.  The  sentences  are  short,  hardly 
any  causal  clauses  being  used.  It  is  just  as  if  a  mother 
would  first  chew  the  food  and  then  put  it  in  the  mouth  of 
her  child,  just  beginning  to  eat 

The  book  opens  with  a  beautiful  explanation  of  Christ- 
mas, the  feast  the  poor  Indians  love  so  much.  Then  follow 
instructions,  most  simple  and  appropriate,  on  'New  Year's 
day  and  Epiphany.  About  one  hundred  pages  are  devoted 
to  the  Passion  of  Our  Lord.  Then  follows  an  instruction 
on  Easter  and  Ascension,  all  beautifully  adapted  to  the 
limited  capacity  of  his  Indian  readers.  He  treats  most 
beautifully  of  prayer,  explaining  separately  and  touch- 
ingly  each  of  the  seven  petitions  of  the  "Our  Father,"  as 
also  the  "Hail  Mary."  He  explains  in  a  masterly  way 
each  of  the  commandments  of  God  and  the  Church.  His 
instructions  on  tlie  Sacraments  are  models  of  Indian  com- 
position, clear,  logical,  simple.  At  the  end  of  the  work  are 
articles  on  the  four  last  things  and  certain  Indian  vices, 
drinking,  gambling,  dancing.  We  have  no  hesitation  in 
pronouncing  this  the  ablest  and  best  work  of  Father 
Baraga.  It  passed  through  two  editions  during  Baraga's 
life  time,  and  is  now  out  of  print  and  becoming  very 


!'\i; 


¥m 


.  -rM 


ii- 


li 


^■■11.'; 


;ii.' 


lii 


252 


BT.    BEY.    FBEDEBIC  BABAOA. 


scarce.  Would  to  God  it  could  bo  reprinted  aud  thus  be 
made  again  accessible  to  our  Indians!  But  our  Indian 
missionaries  are  poor  and  can  do  nothing. 

Speaking  of  these  two  works,  he  writes  to  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Vienna,  one  of  the  directors  of  the  Leopoldine 
Society,  as  follows : 

"I  had  two  works  printed  here  (in  Detroit,  in  1850), 
of  which  I  made  mention  in  my  last  letter.  Now  they  are 
finished.  One  of  them  is  a  theoretic-practical  grammar  of 
the  Indian  language,  and  the  other  an  Indian  meditation 
and  instniction  book  on  all  the  truths  of  our  holy  religion 
(ISTanagatawendamo-masinaigan).  I  take  the  liberty  of 
sending  to  Your  Princely  Highness  two  copies  of  the 
grammar  and  one  copy  of  the  Indian  work  (the  above- 
spoken  of  Chippewa  meditati*  n  and  instruction  book). 
The  latter  is  in  the  fonn  of  a  pocket  manual,  because  In- 
dians like  to  take  along  their  books  wherever  they  go.  The 
dictionary  could  not  be  printed  at  present.  There  is  too 
much  work  connected  with  it.  I  will  immediately  send 
the  little  box  witli  the  books  from  here,  but  it  will  be  per- 
haps late  in  the  season  before  it  gets  to  Vienna.  I  pray 
Your  Highness  to  excuse  me  for  asking  you  to  forward 
the  books  in  the  enclosed  package  early  and  safely  to 
Laibach. 

"During  the  whole  time  of  my  stay  iiere  I  was  very 
busy,  for  I  was  having  both  works  printed  at  the  same  time, 
and  had  much  to  do  in  correcting  the  proof  sheets.  The 
days  were  always  too  short  for  me  and  they  went  by  so 
quickly  that  it  seemed  to  me  as  if  it  was  always  Sunday. 
On  four  Sundays  I  preached  in  the  French  church,  on 
three  Sundays  in  the  English,  and  on  the  remaining  Sun- 
days in  the  German  church. 

"Day  after  tomorrow  I  shall  depart  for  home  and  take 
along  to  my  mission  a  young,  exemplary  priest.  The  Rt. 
Rev.  Bishop  sends  him  with  me  to  learn  the  Indian  lan- 
guage and  then  labor  in  the  missions.    That  is  a  very  good, 


AGAIN  VISITS   NORTHERN    MICHIGAN. 


263 


ancient  Jesuit  plan.  For  it  is  really  much  bettor  that  a 
missionai*y  first  leani  the  Indian  language  before  ho  be- 
gins to  work  in  the  missions.  It  is  a  very  disagreeable  und 
difficult  thing  if  a  missionary  is  obliged  to  use  an  inter- 
preter. As  a  matter  of  corpse,  this  plan  must  be  followed 
first.  But  now  that  v^e  have  a  grammar  and  books  in  the 
Indian  language,  young  missionaries  will  easily  and  soon 
learn  the  language.  I  am  glad  that  this  priest  is  going 
with  me.  He  is  a  saintly  man  and  has  the  finn  resolution 
to  spend  his  whole  life  in  the  Indian  missions.  He  is  a 
Belgian  and  his  name  is  Charles  Van  Paemel"  (should  be 
Angelus  Van  Paemel). 

From  a  letter  of  Bishop  Lefevre,  dated  September 
15th,  1S52,  we  learn  that  Father  Pierz  left  his  diocese  in 
the  spring  of  that  same  year  and  that  he  went  to  Minnesota 
to  establish  a  new  Indian  mission  there. 

During  the  winter  of  1850-1851  Father  Baraga  visited 
again  his  mission  stations  at  the  different  copper  mines  of 
Keweenaw  Point,  Northern  Michigan.  There  were  qmte 
a  large  number  of  Irish,  French  and  GeiTnans  among  the 
mining  population,  and  to  tend  to  them  all  meant  a  great 
increase  of  labor  and  hardships  to  the  zealous  missionary. 
The  weather  was  very  cold  that  wdnter.  He  had  to  go 
from  one  place  to  another  on  snow-shoes  and  carry  his 
heavy  pack,  containing  all  things  necessary  for  divine  ser- 
vice. On  one  of  these  apostolic  journeys  he  was  in  the 
greatest  danger  of  losing  his  life. 

It  was  towards  the  end  of  January,  during  the  coldest 
days  and  nights  of  that  month.  He  was  on  his  w  ay  homer 
ward,  after  having  visited  the  mining  settlements.  He 
stayed  over  night  in  a  certain  house.  From  this  plaxje  to 
the  nearest  human  habitation  on  his  way  wei*e  thirty  miles. 
Generally  he  used  to  walk  that  distance  in  ten  or  twelve 
hours ;  but  this  time  it  came  other^vise.  During  the  entire 
preceding  day  and  during  the  whole  night  it  snowed  fear- 
fully, so  that  the  snow,  which  even  before  was  very  deep, 


W'l 


m. 


J'U 


I-  ip  < 


i4^ 

*iii 


'1.^  I 


ft'i -  I. 


ir  m¥ 


u 


.'I  ,,! 


"  ill 


Ki  1   'l 


II 


!  m 


: 


;; 


mi ' 


iJ' 


i.i 


1.  ft? 


^:.i:';ii! 


;,,.), .ill. 


'ii'  '111!  i^! 

..!'  'l.f'i.o 


254 


BT.   BEV.   FBEDEBIC   BABAGA. 


bcvamo  a  gToat  deal  deeper  and  the  walking  so  much  more 
fatiguing  and  difficult.  And  through  this  deep  snow  ho 
liad  to  travel  entirely  alono  over  thirty  miles.  It  was  only 
through  a  special  protection  of  God  that  he  escaped  with 
his  life. 

lie  left  the  house,  in  -which  he  had  remained  over  night, 
about  seven  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  then  he  began  to 
make  his  way.  He  soon  felt  very  tired,  but  kept  on  walk- 
ing slowly  all  day  long,  making  but  little  progress.  About 
iivo  in  the  evening  he  had  made  but  half  the  way.  It  was 
truly  horrible.  It  was  evening,  night  was  at  hand,  and  ho 
was  fifteen  long  miles  away  from  the  nearest  hiunan  d\vell- 
ing,  all  alone.  The  night  was  dark  and  intensely  cold.  No 
fire,  nothing  but  a  piece  of  cake  to  eat,  and  he  ready  to 
sink  down  in  the  snow  at  anv  moment  from  exhaustion  and 
weakness!  What  was  the  poor  priest  to  do?  He  had 
either  to  walk  on  or  freeze  to  death.  With  a  fervent  prayer 
he  recommended  himself  to  Divine  Providence,  which  had 
so  often  before  wonderfully  protected  him,  and  walked  on 
ajid  on  during  all  that  long,  dai'k,  and  bitterly  cold  night 
At  last,  at  seven  in  the  morning,  he  arrived  at  the  house 
and  sank  down  totally  exhausted.  Nature  could  stand  the 
strain  no  longer.  The  people  of  the  house  were  astonished 
beyond  measure  at  his  coming.  He  had  walked  twenty- 
four  hours,  without  resting,  through  the  deep  snow,  with 
his  snow-shoes  on  and  carrying  his  heavy  pack,  tvith  noth- 
ing to  eat  hut  a  piece  of  dry,  frozen  cake!    He  says : 

"I  could  not  thank  God  enough,  when  I  arrived  at  the 
house.  Many  a  time  I  thought  during  the  night,' which 
was  bitterly  cold,  that  I  would  sink  down  and  freeze  be^ 
fore  I  would  get  to  the  house.  And  it  was  really  only 
through  the  special  protection  of  my  loving,  heavenly 
Father  that  I  could  hold  out  in  such  great  hardship.  My 
trust  in  tlie  help  of  God  under  all  circumstances  of  life 
was  even  before  that  very  great;  but  this  occurrence  has 
heightened  it  a  great  deal  more." 


m 
m 


CHAPTER  XLIIL 


BAKAGA  S   ELEVATION  TO   THE   EPISCOPAL   DIGNITY. SAULT 

STE.  MAKIE  HIS  EPISCOPAL  SEE. A  SIIOIiT  HISTORICAL 

SKETCH  OF  THE  PLACE  AND  OF  THE  MISSIONARIES  WHO 
LABORED  THERE. 


ffht 


life 
has 


Wo  are  now  to  enter  upon  a  new  era  in  the  life  of 
saintly  Baraga.  We  have  endeavored  to  give  the  reader  a 
true  picture  of  his  life  as  child,  student,  priest  and  Indian 
missionarv.  We  are  now  to  narrate  his  holv,  self-sacrific- 
ing  life  as  bishop  of  a  large,  extensive  diocese. 

July  29th,  1853,  the  A^orthern  Peninsula  of  Michigan 
■was  detached  from  the  diocese  of  Detroit  and  erected  into 
a  Vicariate- Apostolic.  On  the  1st  of  I^oveinber  of  tliat 
same  year  Very  Rev.  Frederic  Baraga  was  consecrated  in 
the  cathedral  of  Cincinnati  by  Archbishop  Purcell, 
Bishops  Lefevre  of  Detroit  and  Henni  of  Milwaukee  act- 
ing as  assistant  consecrators.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted 
that  no  particulars  of  this  important  event  have  anywhere 
been  recorded. 

Bishop  Lefevre  ceded  to  the  newly  consecrated  bishop 
the  Indian  missions  of  his  diocese  in  lower  Michigan,  and 
Bishop  Henni  did  the  same  in  regard  to  those  of  ISTorthem 
Wisconsin ;  the  like  was  done  hy  the  bishop  of  Hamilton 
in  regard  to  the  Indians  of  the  north  shore  of  I  ake  Supe- 
rior. B.  Baraga  had  thus  a  very  large  territory  confided, 
to  his  care.  It  extended  from  Fond  du  Lac,  fifteen  miles 
beyond  the  western  extremity  of  Lake  Superior,  to  Arbre 
Croche  and  the  adjacent  islands  and  missions,  thus  taking 
in  all  the  country  around  Lake  Superior,  the  entire  l^orth- 
em  Peninsula,  and  a  considerable  Dart  also  of  the  Southern 


H   ^ 


I 


m 

■••,'n 


W~\M 


\'h 


mv 


I  >i.'. 


J ' 


ri^;:ll■it!i 


iiH; 


256 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


Po.niiisulii  of  Aliclu*:ari.  From  a  lottor  of  his  "vvc  loam 
that  at  tlio  time  of  liis  consccratioii  tliero  were  but  two 
j)ri(\st8  in  Noi*th('ni  Ali('liif::an. 

From  time  immemorial  the  falls  of  Sault  Sto.  Marie 
were  a  common  campinp;  ground  for  Indians  of  the  whole 
surrounding  eountrv  on  account  of  tlie  abundance  of  white- 
fish  and  lake  trout  found  there.  However,  the  Saulteurs 
or  Eawiting  daji-ininiwag  were  the  regular  settlers  of  the 
place.  Thev  fonned  a  brajich  of  the  great  Chippewa  na- 
tion who  inhabiteil  both  the  northern  iuid  southern  shores 
of  Lake  Superior. 

The  iirst  white  man  to  visit  Sault  Ste.  Marie  and  gaze 
on  the  limpid  Maters  of  our  great  inland  sea  was  most 
probably  the  Franciscan  Father  Jose])h  Le  Caron,  in 
1615  or  thereal>outs.  It  seems  that  Etienne  Brule,  a 
French  trader,  was  there  at  an  eai'ly  day,  too.  In  1634 — 
or,  as  some  assert,  1630-  -Jean  Nicollet  visited  the  Winne- 
bagoes  near  Green  Bay,  but  wdiether  he  saw  Lake  Superior 
is  i..icertain.  In  1642  Jogues  and  Raymbault,  two  Jesuit 
FatJiers,  visited  the  Sault  and  were  well  received  by  the 
2,000  Indians  assembled  there  to  celebrate  the  great  feast 
of  the  dead.  Father  Marquette  spent  a  year  there,  1668- 
1669,  and  found  the  people  w^ell  inclined  to  Christianity. 
Father  Dablon  was  thei*e  for  some  years  and  may  be  justly 
called  the  founder  of  said  mission.  On  the  14th  of  June, 
1671,  Sieur  Lusson,  acting  in  tlie  name  of  the  Intendant 
Talon  and  of  his  Majesty  Louis  XIV,  of  France,  took 
formal  possession  of  Sault  St-e.  Marie  and  of  all  the  coun- 
try represented  by  the  ambassadors  of  fourteen  different 
Indian  tribes  assembled  for  that  purpose.  All  the  Fathers 
and  Frenchmen  in  that  vicinity,  as  well  as  a  great  number 
of  Indians,  were  present,  and  Father  AUouez  addressed 
the  multitude  as  follows : 

^^Behold,  a  noble  affair  presents  itself  to  us,  my 
brethren ;  grand  and  important  is  the  affair,  which  is  the 
object  of  this  council.    Look  up  to  the  Cross,  elevated  so 


mm 


ADDBESS   OP   FATHER   ALLODEZ. 


257 


higb  above  your  Loads.  To  such  a  (^ross  it  was  that  Jcsiis 
Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  having  become  man  for  the  love  of 
man,  allowe<l  himself  to  he  fastened  and  to  die,  in  order 
to  render  satisfaction  to  the  eternal  Father  for  our  sins. 
lie  is  the  master  of  our  lives,  of  heaA^en  and  earth  and  hell. 
It  is  of  Him  I  always  speak  to  you  and  His  name  and  word 
1  have  carried  into  all  these  countries. 

*^But  look  also  at  this  other  pole,  to  which  are  attached 
the  arms  of  the  great  chie-<^  of  France,  whom  wo  call  the 
king.  He  lives  beyond  the  sea.  He  is  the  chief  of  the 
greatest  chiefs;  he  has  not  his  equal  on  earth!  All  the 
chiefs  you  have  ever  seen  or  heard  of  are  but  children  in 
comparison  to  him.  He  is  like  a  great  tree  and  they — they 
are  only  like  small  plants,  which  are  trampled  under  foot 
in  walking.  You  know  Onontio,  the  celebrated  chief  (gov- 
ernor) of  Quebec ;  you  know  and  experience  how  he  is  the 
terror  of  the  Iroquois,  and  his  mei-e  name  makes  them 
treuble,  since  he  ravished  their  country  and  carried  fire 
into  their  villages.  There  are  beyond  the  sea  ten  thousand 
Onontios  like  him,  who  are  but  the  soldiers  of  this  grand 
chief,  our  great  king,  of  whom  I  am  speaking.  When  he 
says  the  words,  "I  am  going  to  war,"  every  one  obeys  him 
and  those  ten  thousand  chiefs  raise  companies  each  of  one 
hundred  soldiers,  both  on  land  and  sea.  Some  embark  in 
ships,  one  to  two  hundred  in  number,  such  as  you  have  seen 
at  Quebec.  Your  canoes  cari*y  four  or  five  men;  at  the 
highest,  from  ten  to  twelve.  Our  French  ships  carry  four, 
five  hundred  and  even  as  many  as  a  thousand.  Others  go 
to  war  on  land,  but  in  numbers  so  great  that,  ranged  in 
double  file,  they  would  reach  from  here  to  Mississaquenk, 
although  we  count  more  than  twenty  leagues  till  there. 
When  he  attacks,  it  is  more  terrible  than  thauuer ;  the  earth 
trembles,  the  air  and  sea  are  on  fire  with  the  discharge  of 
his  cannons.  He  has  been  seen  in  the  midst  of  his  troops, 
covered  all  over  with  the  blood  of  his  enemies,  of  whom  so 
many  have  been  put  to  the  sword  by  him,  that  he  does  not 


\ 


i 


if 


> 


258 


BT.   REV.    FRKDERIC   BARAOA. 


count  tho  scalps,  but  only  the  streams  of  blood  which  he 
has  caiised  U)  flow!  lie  carries  oif  so  great  a  number  of 
prisoners  of  war  that  he  makes  no  account  of  them,  but 
lets  tJiem  go  wherever  they  like,  to  sliow  that  he  doen  not 
fear  them.  At  pret^ent  no  one  dares  to  make  war  on  him. 
All  those  living  beyond  tho  sea  have  sued  him  for  peace 
with  the  greatest  submission.  From  all  parts  of  tho  world 
people  go  to  see  him,  to  hear  and  admire  him !  It  is  ho 
alone  that  decides  all  the  affairs  of  the  world  !  What  shall 
I  say  of  his  riches  ?  You  esteem  yourselves  rich  when  you 
have  ten  or  twelve  sacks  of  corn,  some  hatchets,  beads,  ket- 
tles, or  some  other  things  similar.  He  has  more  cities  her 
longing  to  him  than  there  are  men  among  you  in  all  these 
'coimtries  in  five  hundred  leagues  around !  In  each  city 
there  are  stores  in  which  enough  axes  could  be  found  to  cut 
down  all  your  forests;  enough  kettles  to  boil  all  your 
moose,  and  enough  glass  beads  to  fill  all  your  wigwams ! 
His  house  (palace)  is  longer  than  from  here  to  the  head  of 
the  Sault — that  is,  more  than  half  a  league;  it  is  higher 
than  the  highest  of  your  trees,  and  it  holds  more  families 
than  the  largest  of  your  villages  can  contain." 

No  wonder  the  Indians  were  filled  with  wonder  and 
astonishment  that  there  was  a  man  on  earth  so  great,  so 
rich  and  so  po^verful!  Good  Father  AUouez  indulged  in 
hyperbolic  language,  to  impress  his  dusky  hearers  with  a 
gTeat  idea  of  the  grandeur  of  the  "Grand  Monarch," 
Louis  XIV. 

In  1674,  three  years  after  the  above  narrated  solemn 
act,  a  delegation  of  Sioux  came  to  the  Sault  to  take  part 
in  a  general  Indian  council  of  the  northwestern  tribes. 
During  one  of  the  deliberations  a  sanguinary  affray  oc- 
curred between  them  and  the  assembled  Crees  and  Chip- 
pewas.  All  the  Sioux  were  killed,  but  also  many  of  their 
enemies,  and  the  mission  building  was  set  on  fire  and 
burned  to  the  gi-ound.  Father  Dreuillettes  labored  long 
and  successfully  at  the  Sault.    After  his  departure  or  death 


JESUIT   FATHBBS  AT   THE  SAULT. 


259 


long 


the  miHrtion  seoiiis  to  have  been  abandoned,  the  Fathers  con- 
<5entrating  their  forces  at  St.  Igiiaco  in  Michigan,  St.  Fran- 
cis Xavier,  at  Do  Pore,  Wis.,  and  Kaskaskia,  111. 

In  1834  the  Redemptorist  Father  Ilatscher  lalwred 
with  gi'eat  zeal  and  much  fi-uit  at  the  Sault.  Bishop  Re«e 
visite-d  the  mission  that  year,  baptizcMl  many  Winnebagoes 
and  ooniirnieHl  :  lore  than  one  hundred  of  them.  A  small 
Catholic  church  had  been  built  there.  It  was,  however, 
soon  after  destroyed  by  a  fanatical  mob,  that  smashed  the 
windows,  threw  the  vestments,  chalice  and  other  utensils 
out  doors  and  destroyed  them.  They  tore  the  missals  into 
shreds.  When  Father  ILHtscher  attempted  to  decorate  his 
church  for  All  Saints'  day  they  fireil  the  building.  It  is 
a  remarkable  coincidence  that  the  same  blind  hatred 
against  the  church  impelled  a  mob  to  destroy  that  verv  year, 
on  tlie  11th  of  August,  the  ITrsuline  Convent  at  Charles- 
town,  Mass.,  founded  in  1820  by  Bishop — after\vard3 
Archbishop  and  Cardinal — Cheverus.  Father  Hiitscher, 
however,  continued  to  labor  at  the  Sault  until  the  4th  of 
July,  1835,  when  he  was  moved  by  his  superior,  F.  San- 
derl,  to  Ohio. 

In  the  fall  of  1836  Father  Pierz  took  charge  of  the 
Sault  and  commenced  to  build  another  church.  He  also 
visited  the  Island  of  3t.  Joseph  and  Kitchimitigong  (Large 
Tree).  In  the  last  named  place  he  converted  many  pagans. 
We  find  him  still  at  the  Sault  in  1838,  during  which  year 
he  visited  Michipicoton,  where  almost  all  the  pagans  re- 
ceived holy  baptism.  He  then  went  to  Okwanikissong, 
where  he  baptized  many  Indians.  After  having  spent 
nearly  a  whole  year  at  Grand  Portage,  Pigeon  River,  and 
Fort  William,  he  returned  to  the  Sault  in  1839.  Therer 
after  he  made  his  home  in  Arbre  Croche,  whence  he  visited, 
from  time  to  time,  the  Sault  and  other  stations  until  1852, 
when  he  went  to  Minnesota,  residin*;;  most  of  the  time  in 
Crow  Wing. 

In  1846  the  Jesuit  Fathers  came  to  reside  in  the  Sault, 


ii!l 


(I  III  Jii'l 


'«H 


260 


BT.   BEV.   FBEDEBIO  BABAGA. 


Ehl 


1 1  fi'i 
"i'l 

'I; 

i 

if 

:£ 


''iMii: 


''''iliili!' 

'■'■  I,  il';' 


namely,  F.  Menet  and  another  Father.  Ic  1847  F.  Kohler 
of  the  same  order  caine  to  take  charge  of  the  mission  of  the 
Canadian  Sault  across  the  river  witli  F.  Hamipaux  as  itin- 
erant missionary  among  the  Indians.  Father  Monet  re- 
mained at  the  Sault  until  1860,  when  he  was  withdrawn. 
During  this  period  there  was  but  one  regular  residence  for 
the  missionaries,  namely,  at  the  village  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie. 
After  Father  Menet's  return  in  1864  a  residence  of  Jesuit 
Fathers  was  opened  at  the  Canadian  Sault  and  later  on  at 
Garden  River,  about  twelve  miles  below  on  the  Canadian 
side.  Both  those  residences,  however,  till  about  a  decade 
ago,  remained  dependent  on  the  American  Sault.  The 
Fathers  of  the  last  named  residence  have  charge  of  the  fol- 
lowing missions:  Bay  Mills,  Donaldson,  Indian  Point, 
Ishkonigan,  Pickford,  Sugar  Island,  Waiskey  Bay  and 
White  Fish  Point 


i:i'! 


I    ;i 


'-I 


:i:!l; 


•■  :.,ii'"r''!' 

'!!■!■' i  P 


:i  ,•'  I'll! 


tlw, 

m 

'liiiiiiiiiii  i 


if 
iiil  I 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

BISHOP   BARAOa's   pastoral   LETTKR  to  TirE   FAITUFUL   OP 

HIS    VICARIATK-APOSTOLIC    ANNOUNCING    HIS 

ELEVATION   TO  THE   EPISCOPAL   DIONITY. 


Shortly  after  his  elevation  to  the  episcopal  dignity 
Bishop  Baraga  addressed  two  distinct  letters  to  his  people, 
the  one  in  English,  the  other  in  Chippewa.  Both  are  well 
worthy  of  perusal.  The  tone  of  the  Erglish  encyclical  is 
different  from  most  documents  of  this  kind.  It  breathes 
throughout  the  feelings  of  a  loving,  fatherly  heart. 

He  does  not  use  the  words,  "Beloved  brethren,"  he  ad- 
dresses them  with  the  affectionate  name  of  children,  say- 
ing, "My  dear  children."  He  speaks  more  like  a  father 
than  a  dignitary. 

In  the  appendix  we  shall  give  the  Chippewa  document 
with  accompanying  translation.  We  do  this  the  more  will- 
ingly as  B.  Baraga's  pastoral  letter  to  his  Indian  children, 
whom  he  loved  most  warmly,  is  an  unwum  of  its  kind. 
As  far  as  the  writer  knows,  no  such  official  document  was 
ever  issued  in  any  Indian  language.  It  is,  therefore,  well 
worth  preserving,  as  well  for  its  intrinsic  as  also  for  ita 

historic  value. 

♦'FREDERIC  BARAGA, 

BY  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD  AND  THE  FAVOR  OF  THE 

APOSTOLIC  SEE, 

BISHOP  OF  AMYZONIA, 

VICAR  APOSTOLIC  OF  THE  UPPER  PENINSULA 

OF  MICHIGAN. 

TO  THE  FAITHFUL  OF  HIS  DrOCESE,  HEALTH  AND 

BENEDICTION. 

VENERABLE  BRETHREN  OF  THE  CLERGY,  AND  DEARLY 

BELOVED  CHILDREN  IN  CHRIST  JESUS." 


M 


!>> 


ll 


i 


t  I 


!i:l!i 


%' 


!^l 


Ni  -^fi  ''li'' 


*^  *v:ij::= 


1'^^^ 


i'Hjj, 


262 


RT.   RBV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


«t 


^Grace  be  unto  you  and  peace  from  God  the  Father^ 
"and  from  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  gave  himself  for 
"our  sins,  that  he  might  deliver  us  from  this  present  wicked 
"world,  according  to  the  will  of  God  and  our  Father." 

And  the  will  of  God,  our  heavenly  Father,  is  our  sanc- 
tification,  our  eternal  happiness;  that  we  should 
love  him  and  serve  him  in  this  world,  and  be 
happy  with  him  forever  in  the  next.  And  there 
is  no  true  happiness  but  with  him  and  in  him. 
God  Almighty  has  created  us  for  happiness;  and 
he  could  not  create  us  for  anything  else,  because  he  is 
Charity,  and  all  his  designs  and  ways  are  charity  and 
mercy.  He  has  created  all  things  for  us,  but  he  has  created 
us  for  himself.  And  if  we,  nevertheless,  see  how  much 
misery  and  unhappiness  there  is  among  us  in  this  world, 
and  are  taught  that  innumerable  souls  are  in  eternal  suffer- 
ings in  the  next  world,  we  must  acknowledge  that  the  cause 
of  all  that,  is  not  the  will  of  God,  but  our  own  wickedness, 
our  want  of  obedient  submission  to  the  most  holy  and 
merciful  will  of  God  Almighty'.  Our  Savior  and  our  God 
is  infinitely  faithful  to  his  promises.  He  promised  us 
solemnly  that  whosoever  shall  fulfill  the  will  of  his  Father, 
and  our  Father,  that  is  in  heaven,  shall  enter  the  kingdom 
of  .heaven,  and  be  there  eternally  happy  with  God.  We  see 
then  plainly  before  us  the  way  to  happiness ;  it  is :  The 
fulfilling  yf  the  will  of  God,  the  fulfilling  of  our  duties  to- 
wards him. 

Dearly  beloved,  as  I  wish  your  eternal  happiness  with 
the  same  heartfelt  desire  as  I  do  my  own,  I  entreat  you 
with  all  my  heart,  be  faithful  in  the  fulfilling  of  your 
duties  toward  God,  and  God  will  reward  you  for  it  in  his 
heavenly  kingdom. 

I  will  now  explain  to  you  our  principal  and  most  sacred 
duties  towards  God,  that  you  may  mind  them,  and  with  the 
help  of  God  fulfill  them  faithfully.  Read  these  instnie- 
tions  with  attention;  not  only  once  and  then  throw  them- 
away  and  forget  them,  but  read  them  repeatedly,  and 


r>RTOBAL  LETTER   TO   THE   FAITHFUL. 


263 


em 
md 


endeavor  to  practise  them.  This  is  the  first  time  I  speak 
to  you,  through  these  lines,  as  your  principal  Pastor  and 
Bishop.  Let  these  words  enter  into  your  hearts  as  they 
come  out  of  my  heart.  This  heart  has  ever  loved  you,  my 
dear  children,  but  never  so  paternally  as  now. 

I.  Our  first  essential  duty  towards  God  is  the  duty 
of  Faiih,  which  consists  in  the  believing  of  evci*y  word  that 
God  has  revealed  to  us,  without  rejecting  a  single  point  of 
revealed  faith.  Some  truths  of  our  religion  are  so  sub- 
lime that  M'e  cannot  comprehend  them  with  our  feeble  and 
limiteil  reason.  These  truths  we  also  must  believe  on  the 
authority  of  God  who  never  can  err,  never  deceive  nor  be 
deceived.  That  there  are  in  our  holy  religion  some  truths 
so  sublime  that  we  cannot  comprehend  them  shows  the 
divine  character  of  it  and  admonishes  us  of  the  necessity, 
of  the  absolute  submission  of  our  limited  reason  to  the  in- 
fallible authority  of  God.  To  reject  a  single  point  would 
be  to  destroy  the  w^hole ;  because  if  God  could  err  or  deceive 
only  in  one  point,  his  authority  would  be  no  better  than 
human. 

This  dutv  of  faith  is  essential  a.nd  the  fulnlling  of  it 
necessary  for  salvation,  because  wit^out  faith  it  is  impos- 
sible to  please  God.  And  Christ  said  veiy  expressly: 
"He  that  believes  and  is  baptize<l,  shall  be  saved;  but  he 
that  believes  not,  shall  be  condemned."  But  we  must  not 
think  that  faith  alone  will  save  us,  as  many  believe  who 
do  not  belong  to  the  true  church  of  God.  We  have  the  in- 
fallible authority  of  the  word  of  God  for  it,  that  faith 
without  good  w'orks  is  dead;  and  a  dead  faith  will  cer- 
tainly not  procure  us  life  everlasting.  The  devils  also  be- 
lieve and  tremble,  but  they  remain  devils,  because  their 
faith  is  fruitless,  and  ever  was  so.  Our  faith  must  be  a 
living  faith ;  and  a  living  faith  only  will  give  us  life  ever- 
lasting in  heaven.  In  order  to  have  a  living  faith,  we  must 
show  it  in  our  life  and  behavior;  we  must  live  by  our  faith 
according  to  the  principles  of  our  holy  religion ;  we  must 


^(1 


m    I,  . 


W      I, 


|:|: 


?i  ?^ 


ill' 


■15'    'I 
ilt.  1 


iM? 


r 


..■.I 


[■»'■' 


"  I  i: 

;; 

^  ■%"'i'i'  ■ 


!  Si!,"!;.: 


i     ,":.;!   ill. 


Mk 


'  ]\m 


■'■■:!'!':! 

i:i;i'>:i|i 


'■  ii' 

i  M't 

' '  I'' 


;i  ■.,i]j, 


1: 

;:l'l,i. 

m 

! : 

■!!ii 

1 '  1 

i 

^1 

It! 

n! 

264 


BT.    BEY.   FBBDEBIO  BABAQA. 


make  it  our  rule  of  life.  If  we  have,  and  preserve  until 
death,  the  true  faith,  and  do  not  live  according  to  its  pre- 
cepts, we  shall  be  cast  out  into  exterior  darkness  on  the  day 
of  judgment,  like  that  slothful  servant,  who  received  a 
precious  talent  at  the  hands  of  his  master,  and  merely  pre- 
served it,  but  made  no  profit  on  it.  Our  holy  Catholic 
faith  is  a  most  precious  and  immense  treasure,  infinitely 
more  precious  than  all  the  gold  and  silver  of  the  universe. 
This  is  that  precious  talent  which  our  heavenly  Lord  and 
Master  entrusted  to  us,  His  servants,  that  we  may  deal  in 
it,  and  make  all  possible  profit  by  it,  against  the  day  of  ac- 
count. He  that  merely  preserves  this  talent,  and  makes 
no  profit  of  it,  will  certainly  be  cast  out  into  that  horrid 
darkness  of  eternal  damnation. 

Examine  yourselves,  beloved  children,  whether  your 
faith  is  living  and  profitable,  or  dead  and  fruitless.  How 
unhappy  is  the  negligent  Catholic  who  possesses  thai  pre- 
cious talent,  the  true  faith,  revealed  by  the  Son  of  God, 
and  does  not  profit  by  it !  Oh,  how  those  unfortunate  vic- 
tims of  the  justice  of  God  r^et  that  they  did  not  make  a 
better  use  of  their  religion  when  it  was  time !  Would  they 
be  allowed  to  return  to  this  world,  oh !  how  faithful  would 
they  be  in  fulfilling  all  Christian  duties !  They  will  never 
more  be  allowed  to  return  to  this  world ;  but  you,  my  dear- 
est children,  are  yet  in  this  world.  But  vour  time  will 
soon  pass  away  forever.  Profit  by  it ;  it  will  be  for  your 
everlasting  happiness.  You  have  an  immense  treasure  in 
your  hands,  you  can  buy  heaven  with  it.  How  unfortunate 
would  you  be  if  you  profit  not  by  such  an  opportunity ! 

II.  Another  great  duty  of  a  Christian  towards  his 
God  is  the  duty  of  Adoration.  As  soon  as  we  believe  in 
God  and  believe  in  His  revealed  word,  we  will  easilv  un- 
derstand  how  great  our  duty  is  to  adore  Him  and  Him 
alona  "The  Lord  thv  God  thou  shalt  adore  and  serve 
Him  alona'^  We  are  often  accused  by  our  adversaries  of 
adoring  creatures  equally  with  the  Creator.    Let  them  say 


PASTORAL    LETTER   TO  THE   FAITHFUL. 


265 


hia 

in 

lun- 

[im 

Irve 

of 

jay 


what  they  please.  Every  Catholic  child  knows  that  we 
adore  only  God  Almighty,  and  no  other  being.  But  we 
pray  to  the  saints  in  heaven  that  they  may  pray  with  u3 
and  for  us  to  God  Almighty. 

The  duty  of  praying  is  a  great  and  holy  duty.  We  are 
expressly  commanded  to  pray  continually  and  never  to 
cease,  Not  only  the  word  of  our  Savior,  but  also  His  holy 
example  teaches  us  the  duty  of  praying ;  He  was  continu- 
ally praying  and  spent  whole  nights  in  prayer. 

^ever  neglect  your  prayers,  beloved  children.  A 
Christian  without  prayer  is  like  a  soldier  without  arms; 
exposed  to  every  attack  of  his  enemiCvS,  and  easily  over- 
come. We  are  soldiers  of  Christ ;  our  whole  life  is  a  kind 
of  warfare  against  our  enemies,  visible  and  invisible ;  and 
our  strongest  weapon  is  prayer.  If  you  throw  away  that 
weapon,  how  will  you  be  able  to  withstand  the  violent  and 
repeated  attacks  of  your  enemies?  Remember  the  warn- 
ing of  our  Savior,  that  we  must  watch  and  pray ;  or  else 
the  enemy  will  soon  overcome  us. 

Although  we  have  always  to  pray  and  never  to  cease, 
still  there  are  some  periods  of  time  in  which  we  are  more 
strictly  obliged  to  pray.  These  are  especially  the  begin- 
ning and  the  end  of  every  day ;  therefore  every  faithful 
Christian  ought,  invariably,  to  perform  his  morning  and 
evening  prayer.  And  if  he  does  not,  he  neglects  a  decided 
and  sacred  duty  towards  God,  and  deprives  himself  of 
many  graces;  because  prayer  is  the  principal  channel 
through  which  the  grace  of  God  flows  into  our  hearts. 

Dearly  beloved  children,  be  faithful  in  the  fulfilling  of 
this  holy  duty;  and  never  say,  I  have  no  time  to  pray. 
Consider  how  ungrateful  tliis  is.  God  Almighty  gives  you 
twenty-four  hours  everv  dav  for  your  works  and  wants. 
And  out  of  these  twenty-four  hours  you  cannot  give  a  few 
minutes  to  God  for  the  fulfilling  of  a  great  duty?  Fear 
the  reproaches  of  God  on  the  day  of  judgment!  It  t&- 
quires  only  a  good  will  and  a  firm  resolution  to  fulfill  this 


t'ii 


'  I 
.  1 


ill    S'iI'iLe 


I 


•5 


IH 


1: 


>i 


1 


I 


)( 


11 


^.I'lllji!"' 


'I'll'  :ii "' 


I  -^ 


,1 


I; 


^:|  :J'  ^■' 


i'^iS: 


'ill  ;';,'•' 

illil 


266 


RT     EEV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


duty,  and  you  will  find  means  and  time  to  do  it.  And  don't 
think,  my  deaf  children,  that  in  remote  places  you 
are  not  very  strictly  obliged  to  pei*fonn  your  prayers. 
This  is  a  pernicious  illusion.  God  is  everywhere,  and  must 
be  served  everywhere.  Our  Savior  says  plainly  that  the 
true  adorers  ajid  servants  of  God  Avill  adore  Ilim  every- 
where in  spirit  and  in  truth. 

Be  especially  faithful  in  fulfilling  the  duty  of  praying 
on  the  day  of  Our  Lord,  on  Sunday,  which  is  set  apart  by 
God  Almighty  for  His  special  service.  We  read  in  Holy 
Scripture  how  severely  God  has  punished  Sabbath-breakers 
in  ancient  times.  If  He  does  not  punish  them  always  now 
in  this  world,  He  certainlv  will  in  the  next.  It  is  a  melan- 
choly  fact  (but,  nevertheless,  very  true,  and  it  came  a 
thousand  times  within  my  experience)  that  many  Chris- 
tians living  in  remote  places  neglect  more  their  duty  of 
praying  and  c-ommit  more  sins  on  Sunday  than  on  any 
otiier  day  in  the  week.  How  horrid  this  is !  And  what 
a  responsibility  on  the  day  of  judgment !  Be  careful,  dear 
children,  and  fear  the  judgment  of  God.  It  may  fall  upon 
you  on  a  sudden  and  unexpectedly.  Watch  and  pray. 
Perform  your  prayers  every  morning  and  every  evening, 
and  during  the  day  frequently  remember  God ;  and  so  you 
will  fulfill  that  precept  of  our  Savior :  "Pray  continually 
and  never  cease." 

III.  The  third  of  our  principal  and  most  essential 
duties  towards  God  is  the  duty  of  Respect;  that  we  ought 
to  respect  God  more  than  any  person  on  earth.  This  duty 
seems  to  be  plainly  understood,  and  it  seems  to  be  a  matter 
of  course  that  God  be  more  respected  than  any  person  on 
earth,  because  He  is  the  most  Perfect  Being.  And  still 
there  is  hardly  any  other  duty  towards  God  that  is  so  often 
transgressed,  especially  by  many  classes  of  people,  than 
this  very  duty  of  respect. 

To  fulfill  this  duty,  we  ought  never  to' forget  the  pres- 
ence of  God,  but  continually  to  remember,  as  we  are  taught 


PA8T0RAL   LETTER   TO   THE   FAITHFUL. 


267 


I : 


res- 
ght 


by  our  faith,  that  God  Almighty  is  everywhere  present, 
that  He  knows  onr  thoughts,  hears  our  words,  and  sees  our 
actions ;  and  then  to  behave  as  it  becomes  the  awful  pres- 
ence of  God.  When  a  believing  Christiaji  (as  they  com- 
monly are)  is  in  the  presence  of  a  respected  and  worthy 
clergyman,  he  behaves  decently;  not  a  single  word  will 
escape  his  lips  that  cx>uld  oifend  the  re-spected  person ;  not 
a  single  action  or  gesture  will  take  place  that  could  hurt 
the  feelings  of  the  person  of  that  raspectable  character. 
But  consider  the  same  Christian  when  he  is  in  his  ordinary 
common  society,  amongst  persons  whom  he  does  not  partic- 
ularly respect.  He  ^vill  behave  quite  differently,  he  will 
use  bad  language,  he  will  curse,  swear,  blaspheme,  and 
pronounce  impure,  obscene  words.  And  all  this  in  the 
very  presence  of  God,  the  Most  Holy,  the  Most  High. 
What  a  want  of  respect !  And  what  a  perversity  !  He  re- 
spects the  presence  of  a  man,  and  does  not  respect  the  awrful 
presence  of  his  God  !  And  transgresses  horribly  the  sacred 
duty  of  respect  towards  God.  If  God  Almighty  would  re- 
quire of  us  only  as  much  respect  for  His  Most  Holy 
Majesty  as  we  use  towards  respectable  persons  on  earth, 
every  believing  Christian  would  say  that  this  would  not  be 
enough.  And  indeed  it  would  not  be  enough,  because  there 
is  no  comparison  between  the  respectability  of  the  highest 
person  in  this  world  and  the  Most  Holy  Majesty  of  God! 
And  still — to  tJie  shame  of  the  majority  of  Christians  we 
must  acknowledge  it — there  is  less  respect  among  Chris- 
tians for  God  Almighty  than  for  respectable  persons  in 
this  v(7orld. 

Consider  this,  dearly  beloved  children,  and  reflect  seri- 
ously how  often  you  have  transgressed  this  sacred  duty  to- 
wards God ;  how  often  you  have  spoken  words  and  com- 
mitted actions  in  the  presence  of  God  which  you  never 
would  do  in  the  presence  of  a  clergyman  or  other  respect- 
able person.  Repent  of  it,  beloved  children,  and  maJ^e  a 
firm  resolution  never  to  forget  the  presence  of  God;  to 


U 


}> 


I     I 


i 


• 


u! 


i 
> 


"!■ 


11 


« 


p:i;«  I 


it 


iml 


i1:   'ilil    'I 


,■•■•  II,' 
•'.I'.  Ill 


268 


BT.    REV.    PRBDBRIC   lURAGA. 


look  at  Hini  oons^tantlj  with  tho  (\V(»s  of  faith,  and  tx)  Ihv 
have  in  His  proHonco  as  it  btvomoa  a  Ix'lieviii^  (/hrintiaii, 
who  knows  fliat  God,  his  future  jud^>,  evorywhoro  scea 
him,  ami  hears  ail  his  words. 

IV.  Tlio  fourth  principal  duty  of  a  Christian  towards 
his  God  is,  tlie  duty  of  Obedu^nce.  Wo  havo  strict  dutiea 
of  obotlionrt:^  even  to  certain  persons  in  this  world.  Thus 
children  are  strictly  ohlii^e<i  to  Ik>  obniient  to  their  parentfl ; 
and  servants  are  commanded  hv  the  word  of  God  to  Iw 
oboKliont  to  their  masters  in  alt  things  that  are  not  against 
tho  law  of  G(xi ;  and  to  be  (>l>edient  even  to  wicked  and 
peevish  masters.  But  far  greater  is  our  duty  of  obedience 
towards  Goti,  who  is  our  heavenly  Father,  and  the  best  of 
Fathers,  our  Supreme  Lord  and  Master,  and  the  kindest 
of  Masters. 

To  1)0  obedient  means,  to  fulfill  the  will  of  a  superior. 
To  he  obedient  to  God  means,  then,  to  fulfill  His  holy  will. 
When  a  master  wiuits  his  servant  to  do  something  for  him, 
he  will  tell  him  what  he  has  to  do,  and  the  servant  will 
know  the  will  of  his  master.  But  how  can  we  know  what 
God,  our  heavenly  Lord  and  Master,  wants  us  to  do  ?  Goil 
has  established  several  means  by  which  we  may  understand 
what  is  His  will,  in  order  to  fulfill  it.  The  voice  of  can- 
science  is  one  of  these  means  by  which  God  gives  us  to  un- 
derstand His  will.  The  voice  of  vour  conscience  is  the 
voice  of  God.  Pav  attention  to  the  voice  of  vour  conscience 
and  you  will  understand  that.  When  you  propose  to  do 
wrong,  or  are  in  danger  of  committing  sin,  your  conscience 
will  inunediatelv  warn  you  not  to  do  evil,  to  avoid  it  bv  all 
means.  On  the  contrary,  when  you  propose  to  do  good, 
and  find  opportunity  to  do  so,  your  conscience  will  encour- 
age you  to  do  all  good  you  can.  See  here  the  plain  will  of 
God.  To  avoid  ev'^  and  do  good,  this  is  for  us  invariably 
the  will  of  God.  So,  then,  beloved  children,  in  order  to 
fulfill  the  holy  will  of  God  Almighty,  listen  to  your  con- 
science and  follow  its  dictates,  avoiding  what  it  forbids 


TASTOKAL   LETTER   TO  THE   FAITHFUL. 


269 


>i(iB 


you,  hikI  doing  uiiut  it  coinmands  you ;  tirid  by  ho  doing 
you  will  fulfill  th«  Hacr('<l  duty  of  obodicuce  U>  (J(xl. 

Another  means  l)y  which  (ii<xl  Almighty  makcH  U8  know 
His  holy  will  is  the  "word  of  God,"  which  is  written  in  the 
Jloly  Scri{)tureH  and  other  gocnl  religious  Injoks,  and  is  an- 
nounceil  U)  us  by  the  pastoix  of  His  church.  Their  in- 
Btnictions  have  l)e<'n  called  the  "word  of  dod^'  from  the 
tirst  times  of  Ohrist-t^ndom,  as  wo  set;  in  Holy  Scripture 
(I  Thos.  ii,  13).  And  our  Savior  eonunands  us  expre«sly 
to  listen  io  the  pastors  of  His  church  witii  the  same  roHpect 
and  submission  as  to  Himself.  He  cxHiimanda  thean  to 
preach  His  doctrine  to  the  whole  world,  and  assures  us  that 
we  hear  Himself  when  wo  hear  th(;m.  Dearly  beloved 
children,  in  order  t-o  be  obedient  to  God,  your  heavenly 
Father  and  Suprejne  Master,  be  faithful  in  the  fulfilling 
of  the  i)recept.s  and  instructions  of  ycnir  good  pastors  and 
confessoi*s.  Be  thankful  to  God  that  He  make«  you  know 
His  holy  will  by  these  means  and  profit  by  tJiem.  Re- 
mem  ^^r  what  an  awful  responsibility  awaits  you  on  the 
day  of  judgment  if  you  do  not  profit  by  such  means  of  sal- 
vation. 

V.  The  fifth  principal  duty  we  have  towards  God,  is 
the  duty  of  Love;  that  we  ought  to  love  God  above  all. 
This  is  a  most  holy  dutv  of  everv  Christian :  but,  unfor- 
tunately,  much  neglected,  and  very  rareJy  fulfilled  as  it 
ought  to  be.  How  strict  and  important  this  our  duty  is, 
we  may  understand  by  the  express  command  of  our  Savior 
to  love  God,  and  by  his  minut>e  description  of  the  character 
of  our  love  towards  God.  Not  only  did  he  say  tiiat  we 
must  love  God,  but  he  explained  that  we  must  love  the  Lord 
our  God  ^Svith  our  whole  heart  and  with  our  whole  soul 
and  with  our  whole  mind  and  with  our  whole  strength." 
The  ancient  Fathers  of  the  church  wondered  that  it  was 
necessary  to  give  to  Christians  an  express  commandment 
to  love  God.  "Is  it  not  natural,"  they  say,  "to  the  heart 
of  a  Christian,  who  is  a  child  of  God,  to  love  his  heavenly 


if 

;  i 

u 


270 


BT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAGA. 


PJlf!    i: 


I'll 


ii  iW 


'ii  '1 


•"I,  w' 


.'.^>M 


:ii:'->l:l'^:.j 


•'M 


,1  ■If; 


■Ill/iJ::' 


«!l!ii! 


iHSil!: 


i 


Father  above  all  ?  Was  it  nece^ssary  to  command  it,  to 
prescribe  it  ?"  Oh,  certainly,  it  was !  And  notwithstand- 
ing this  express  commandment  and  the  detailed  descrip- 
tion of  it,  very  few  Christians  love  God  according  to  this 
description  of  our  Savior. 

Consider  often,  beloved  children,  these  four  marks  of 
the  true  love  of  God,  and  examine  yourselves  whether  your 
love  has  these  marks.  x\nd  do  not  think  that  only  a  few 
chosen  and  extraordinary  souls  are  obliged  to  love  God 
thus.    Ko !  we  are  all  obliged  so  to  love  Him ! 

The  first  mark  of  the  true  love  of  God  is,  that  we  love 
Him  with  our  whole  heart;  that  is,  that  we  do  not  divide 
our  lieart  between  God  and  the  world,  between  the  Creator 
ajid  the  creature.  God  is  a  jealous  God,  as  we  see  in  Holy 
8cripture;  He  suffers  no  other  lover  besides  Him,  much 
less  above  Him.  He  wants  your  whole  heart,  or  nothing. 
If  yon  love  anything  more  than  God,  or  as  much  as  God, 
you  have  not  the  true  love  of  God.  And  if  you  are  not 
earnestly  ready  to  part  with  anything  in  the  world  for  the 
love  of  God,  if  He  requires  it  of  you  through  the  mouth  of 
a  pastx)r  of  His  church,  you  do  not  love  Him  with  all  your 
heart ;  your  heart  is  divided,  and  consequently  not  accepted 
by  God  at  all.  But  understand  well,  beloved  children, 
when  we  are  commanded  to  love  God  with  our  whole  heart, 
this  means  not  that  v:e  must  not  love  anything  but  God. 
We  may  love,  and  w^e  are  commanded  to  love,  our  parents, 
our  relatives,  our  benefactors,  our  friends,  even  our  ene- 
mies. But  we  must  love  all  in  God,  according  to  the  will 
of  God,  and  for  God's  sake ;  and  God  in  all  and  above  all. 
And  so  we  will  love  Him  with  our  whole  heart. 

The  second  mark  of  the  true  love  o  God  is,  that  we  love 
Him  with  our  whole  soul.  This  is  a  Scriptural  expression. 
We  often  find  in  Holy  Scripture  the  word  "soul"  instead 
of  "life."  So,  for  instance,  our  Savior  says  that  whosoever 
shall  lose  his  "soul"  in  this  world  for  His  sake,  shall  find 
it  in  the  next;  that  is,  whosoever  shall  lose  liia  "life"  for 


PAvSl^OBAL   LETTER   TO  THE   FAITHFITL. 


271 


^©  love 
jssion. 
istead 
3oever 
llfind 
"  for 


hia  Savior's  nake  in  this  world,  shall  find  tnio  lifo  in  the 
next.  To  lovo  God  with  our  whole  soul,  si!rniti(\s  that  we 
ought  to  lovo  Ilini  more  than  <»ur  own  life,  and  1k3  Hrinly 
resolvc^l  to  lose  our  life  ratluu*  than  to  lose  llini,  throuij^h 
sin.  Jt  ought  to  be  our  tirin  and  eanu^st  ivsolntion  rather 
to  die  than  to  offend  God.  Jiut,  alas!  how  often  will  the 
Christian  eonnnit  sin,  even  a  mortal  sin.  not  to  save  his  life, 
but  for  a  mere  tritie,  for  the  pleasure  of  a  moment,  for  a 
small  luere,  for  the  vapor  of  a  worldly  honor,  for  the  sake 
of  a  worldly  friend,  and  so  forth.  What  would  he  not  do 
if  his  life  were  at  stake !  And  still  we  are  called  upon — 
all  of  us — to  lose  rather  our  life  than  to  offend  God  with  a 
single  sin !  This  is  the  meaning  of  the  solemn  appeal  of 
Christ :    "Love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  thy  whole  soul !" 

The  third  mark  of  the  true  love  of  God  is,  to  love  Ilim 
with  our  whole  mind;  that  is,  that  we  should  oecupy  our 
mind  and  our  thoughts  continually,  or  at  least  frequently, 
with  the  presence  of  God.  It  is  natural  to  a  loving  heart 
to  remember  often,  the  object  of  its  affection.  Imagine  a 
good  loving  child  who  lives  at  a  distance  from  his  kind 
and  loving  father.  That  child  will  almost  continually 
think  of  his  father,  and  will  long  after  the  happy  moment 
of  his  reunion  with  the  beloved  object  of  his  filial  affec- 
tions. So  ought  every  Christian  to  do,  because  he  has  the 
happiness  to  be  a  child  of  the  best  of  Fathers.  x\nd  so  he 
will  do  if  he  loves  God  with  his  w^hole  mind.  lie  will 
think  continually  of  his  heavenly  Father,  and  never  forget 
His  holy  presence.  And  happy,  infinitely  happy,  is  the 
Christian  who  never  forgets  the  presence  of  his  God  and 
Father.  He  will  behave  decently,  and  will  carefully  avoid 
fill  that  could  offend  his  beloved  Father,  in  thoughts  and 
Avords  and  actions ;  and  will  lead  a  holy  life  in  the  love  of 
God. 

The  fourth  mark  of  the  true  love  of  God  is,  that  we 
love  Him  with  our  luhole  strength.  The  true  love  of  God 
is  the  greatest  happiness  and  the  most  precious  privilege 


i.! 
1-1 


YtV 


i  » 


k 


li; 


^» 


■my^ 


hrii-s 


ll. 


a 

'".1 


"  I* 


:  .:;^ 


,  .1'  ., 


' :  i;i 


I:  J-^' 


•'I'I'K 


,-:''!]  i 


272 


RT.    REV.   FREDEIilC  BARAGA. 


of  a  Christian.  It  is  that  splendid  wedding-garment  in 
which  he  will  be  admitted  to  the  happiness  and  eternal  joj 
of  the  "Lamb's  nuptials."  Nothing  in  the  world  can  be 
obtained  without  endeavors  and  labor;  and  the  more  pre- 
cious the  object  and  the  greater  the  fortune  aimed  at,  the 
more  serious  the  eiforts  to  obtain  it-.  As  the  true  love  of 
God  is  decidedly  the  most  precious  treasure  of  a  Christian, 
so  also  our  efforts  to  obtain  and  possess  it  ought  to  be  ex- 
treme. But  when  we  consider  Christians  as  they  com- 
monly are,  we  will  see  how  earnestly  and  perseveringly 
they  endeavor  to  obtain  riches  and  honors  and  pleasures, 
and  all  the  comforts  of  this  perishable  life.  And  the  love 
of  God  ?  This  is  commonly  crowded  out  entirely,  or, 
sought  after  as  a  by-thing,  not  as  the  "One  Thing  Neces- 
sary/^ 

Dearly  beloved  in  Christ  Jesus!  With  all  the  eager- 
ness and  solicitlide  of  a  loving  father's  heart  I  entreat  you, 
in  the  name  of  God,  whose  Holy  Providence  has  now  com- 
mitted you  to  my  spiritual  care,  be  faithful  in  the  fulfilling 
of  these  principal  and  most  essential  duties  towards  God 
our  heavenly  Father.  Especially  endeavor  to  have  thfi 
true  love  of  God,  which  is  the  very  foundation  of  all  Chris- 
tianity, and  the  glorious  mark  of  a  happy  predestination. 
If  you  love  God  sincerely  and  above  all,  you  will  easily  ful- 
fill all  other  duties  towards  Him.  Nothing  is  difficult, 
nothing  tedious,  to  a  loving  heart. 

"The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  charity 
of  God,  and  the  communication  of  the  Holy  Ghost  be  with 
you  all.    Amen." 

-fFREDERIC, 

Bishop  and  Vicar  Apostolic  of  Upper  Michigan. 


CHAPTER  XLV. 
BISHOP    Baraga's    first    letter    to    the    leopoldinb 

SOCIETY  after  HIS  ELEVATION  TO  THE  EPISCOPATE. 

HE   GOES   TO   EUROPE   TO   SECURE   PRIESTS   AND   FUNDS 
FOR  HIS  INFANT  DIOCESE. 


T>!, 


y,  or, 


larity 
with 


»ishop  Baraga  being  placed  at  the  head  of  a  new,  ex- 
tensive, but  poor,  diocese,  naturally  began  to  look  about  for 
means  to  provide  for  the  spiritual  wants  of  his  people,  of 
whom,  perhaps,  one-half,  if  not  more,  were  Indian  converts. 
Hence,  under  date  of  January  23d,  1854,  he  penned  the 
following  letter  to  the  Leopoldine  Society : 

"Through  the  Providence  of  God,  who  protects  and 
governs  His  holy  church,  I,  although  unworthy,  have  been 
made  Bishop  and  Apostolic-Vicar  of  Upper  Michigan,  in 
North  America,  and  have  been  consecrated  in  Cincinnati 
on  the  first  of  November  of  last  year. 

''Upper  Michigan  is  as  yet  an  entirely  new  country. 
It  is  but  ten  years  ago  since  it  was  ceded  by  the  Irdians  to 
the  United  States  government.  Soon  after,  however,  im- 
portant copper  and  iron  mines  were  discovered  there,  and 
then  the  white  population  began  to  increase  most  marvel- 
ously.  Germans,  Irish,  Canadians,  poured  in  masses  into 
Upper  Michigan,  which  country  soon  put  on  another  ap- 
pearance. By  far  the  greatest  majority  of  these  settlers 
are  Catholics.  It  was  now  that  the  want  of  priests  began 
to  be  painfully  felt.  I  was  the  only  priest,  who  for  several 
years  had  to  care  for  all  the  Catholics  there — Germans, 
Irish,  Canadian-French,  and  Indians,  until  at  length  Prov- 
idence called  me  to  care  in  a  higher  sphere  for  these  so" 
abandoned  Catholics. 


ill  -|::ii^^ 


274 


RT.   BEV.    FREDEBIC   BABAUA. 


'iir 


( i 


I:  IcM 


f    ''Sir'' 

ll     ■''''ll'; 


•I     ■     III''' 


"Without  having  bwn  thcro,  a  jMM'Hon  (.'an  imagine  that 
})rovicling  for  a  (Hcxx'rie  in  such  a  tfirttaiit,  extensire,  and 
religiously  so  much  neglected  country  must  be  accompanied 
with  ircredibJe  dithcultie^  ajid  much  unpleasiuitness,  and 
tliat  tlie  Urst  bisliop,  who  lias  Ix'tm  entrusted  with  this  task, 
may  justly  complain  tliat  a  burden  has  been  placed  on  his 
shouJders,  which  would  be  formidable  for  those  of  an  angel, 
vel  anyelicis  humeri^  fonnidandum  opus. 

"In  such  a  country  everything  must  be  ei*ccted : 
churches,  houses  for  priests  and  religious  teachers,  schools, 
houses  for  Brothers  and  Sisters  of  various  useful  religious 
orders,  etc  However,  1  do  not  ask  the  generous  Leopoldine 
Society  to  contribute  anj^tliing  towards  these  buildings.  I 
shall  endeavor  to  prevail  upon  the  good  people  who  inhabit 
Upper  Michigan  to  erect  these  buildings  at  their  own  ex- 
pense. 

"The  Catholics  of  Upper  Michigaai  are,  partly,  con- 
verted Indians,  of  whom  we  have,  thanks  be  to  God,  ali*eady 
five  thousand ;  partly  Germans,  Irish  and  Canadians,  who 
for  the  most  part  belong  to  the  laboring  classes  and  are 
obliged  to  earn,  day  after  day,  their  living  in  the  sweat  of 
their  brow.  Still  they  have  a  good  will  and  are  ready  to 
do  all  in  their  power  to  piovide  for  the  necessary  buildings 
and  for  priests  and  teajchers,  if  they  can  but  obtain  them. 
I  hope  to  find  on  my  European  tour  individuals  of  capacr 
ity,  who  will  joyfully  render  them  all  spiritual  assistance 
and  likewise  instruct  their  children  in  all  useful  branches 
of  knowledge,  unto  the  honor  of  God  and  the  salvation  of 
those  abandoned  souls. 

"For  one  sole  building  do  I  wish  to  receive  pecuniary 
assistance  from  the  Leopoldine  Society,  namely,  for  my 
future  cathedral.  May  I  be  permitted  to  apply  this  grand 
name  to  a  building  of  moderate  dimensions,  to  be  con- 
structed of  brick,  which  is  to  be  90  feet  long,  45  feet  wide, 
and  30  feet  high.  The  little  city  in  which  I  intend  to  fix 
my  Episcopal  S«^  is  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  at  the  entrance  of 


WHITES   THE   LEOPOLDINE  SOCIETY. 


275 


coa- 
i*eady 
who 
are 
at  of 
dy  to 
dings 
thein. 
apax>- 
tance 
nches 
on  of 

liary 

my 

crand 

con- 

Lvide, 

[o  fix 

;e  of 


the  ininicnso  groat  T.akc  SnjxTior.  'J'lierc  is  at  present  an 
old  wo(Mlen  ciiurch  there,  which  for  years  htus  heen  t<K>  small 
on  account  of  the  ra])idly  increasing  population.  Another, 
larger  cliurch  is  ahsolutely  necessary,  ajid  this  will  sei've 
at  the  Nime  time  as  cathedral  for  the  bisho]).  This  church, 
although  con.'paratively  small,  will  certainly  cost  from 
eight  to  nin(5  thousand  dollars,  which  is  more  than  20,000 
florins  C.  ^M.  1  most  urgently  entreat  the  Ilev.  Directory 
to  contribute  £3  mvch  as  })ossible  towards  this  sum.  In 
case  I  obtain  sufficient  means,  I  will  build  this  church 
somewhat  larger,  about  100  feet  long  and  50  feet  wide,  a 
thing  much  to  be  desired  on  account  of  the  future. 

"Another  absolutely  neceft6ai7  outlay,  for  the  defray- 
ing of  which  I  humbly  ask  the  Kev.  Central  Directoi*y,  is 
the  procuring  of  all  those  thing's  which  my  new  priests, 
whom  I  intend  to  take  along  with  me  to  America  next 
spring,  will  need  in  their  future  dwelling  houses,  such  as 
furniture,  beds,  stoves,  etc.,  etc.  All  these  things  will  have 
to  be  first  procured  (in  America),  as  these  Rev.  Fathers 
are  intended  for  places  where  hitherto  no  priest  was  ever 
yet  statione<l.  I  need  ten  new  priests  and  I  have  good 
prospects  of  finding  them.  The  traveling  expenses  of  the 
bishop  and  of  so  many  priests  will  also  caJl  for  a  consider- 
able smn. 

"Besides,  everything  that  a  priest  needs  in  the  exercise 
of  his  holy  functions  will  have  to  be  procured,  such  as  vest- 
ments of  five  different  colors,  albs,  altar  linen,  missals, 
chalices,  ciboriums,  monstrances,  etc.,  etc.  These  holy  ob- 
jects can  be  procured  nowhere  as  cheaply  as  in  Vienna, 
Hence  I  pray  the  Rev.  Central  Directory  to  give  me  the 
means  to  procure  these  holy  objects. 

"These  are  my  principal  needs  and  unavoidable  out- 
lays for  the  erection  of  the  diocese  of  Upper  Michigan 
entrusted  to  me.  Under  such  circumstances  the  beginning 
must  necessarily  be  difficult  and  expensive;  but  it  will  not 
always  remain  so.    When  once  provided  with  priests  and 


n 


■<<■: 


'I 


; 


;.,  ,  •i!i:.'.  I.I 


■J  m 

'^  m 


.■'I'M''! 


'yM:f^' 


Ml  (■■■",  " 


If; 


11 


'If  ^ 


m 


;  !,l|  $"'■ 


■'.'.,i'ii|i|'ii'!!' 

■  ■'  v'i'l'- 

li:    ..i'»!':i'^» 


;l,il!; 

;/;ij;-|l!'' 


'('■: 


iifiii 


276 


BT.   BEV.   FBEDEBIC  BABAOA. 


other  necessaries,  the  usual  running  expenses  of  the  diocese 
will  not  be  very  great.  Hence  I  b^  the  Rev.  Central  Di- 
rectory to  take  the  circumstance  into  consideration  that  I 
come  but  this  one  time  with  such  a  great  petition;  for  a 
little  assistance  now  would  be  but  of  little  service  to  me, 
whereas  hereafter  a  small  annual  contribution  will  be  of 
great  help  to  me." 

Soon  after  his  consecration  Bishop  Baraga  set  out  for 
Europe  to  procure  priests  and  necessary  funds  for  his 
Vicariate- Apostolic,  afterwards  diocese  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie 
and  Marquette.  It  was  not  an  easy  task  to  find  suitable 
missionaries.  Priests  wei'e  needed  who  could  speak  Eng- 
lish, German,  and  French.  Such  priests  were  exceedingly 
rare. 

He  went  to  Paris  to  see  what  they  could  do  for  him  at 
St  Sulpice,  the  college  for  foreign  missions.  Two  young 
priests  offered  their  services  at  once,  though  they  had  been 
trained  and  ordained  for  the  East  India  mission.  Bishop 
Baraga  hesitated  to  accept  their  generous  offer.  Perhaps 
he  feared  that  by  receiving  them  he  would  be  taking  the 
spiritual  bread  out  of  the  mouths  of  many  poor  Catholics 
in  India.  "Call  the  students  together,"  he  said  to  the  Supe^ 
rior  of  the  house,  "and  perhaps  I  shall  find  some  one  th  it 
Avill  suit."  Seating  himself  in  the  prefects  chair  in  the 
study  hall  he  scrutinized  the  uplifted  faces  of  the  many 
bright  young  men  before  him.  Suddenly  his  eyes  fell 
upon  a  young  man  of  handsome,  intellectual  features. 
The  bishop  pointed  him  out  and  asked  who  he  was.  "That, 
my  lord,"  said  the  Superior,  "is  Martin  Fox  (Fuchs),  a 
young  man  from  Berlin  and  a  student  of  promise  and 
rare  abilities.  A  natural  orator,  he  commands  the  French 
language  ahnost  as  well  as  his  native  German.  But  he, 
too,  has  expressed  a  wish  to  go  to  India."  "Send  him  to 
my  room,"  said  the  bishop,  "I  wish  to  talk  with  him." 


SECURES   PRIESTS  AND   FUNDS. 


277 


Martin  had  an  int-erview  with  the  bishop,  the  outcome 
of  which  was  that  he  offered  himself  for  the  American  mis- 
But  there  was  one  great  drawback — Martin  did  not 


eion. 


know  a  word  of  English.  "Yon  will  have  to  go  to  Dublin 
for  a  year,"  said  the  bishop  to  him.  "A  year  in  Dublin 
with  your  ability  ought  to  give  you  a  fair  knowledge  of 
the  English  language,  and  they  say  that  is  the  place  to  get 
the  genuine  article." 

So  Martin,  after  taking  a  tearful  leave  of  the  many 
friends  he  had  made  at  St.  Sulpice,  set  out  for  Ireland. 
The  rest  of  the  story  will  be  told  in  his  own  words : 

"I  parted  from  Bishop  Baraga  as  from  the  best  and 
most  indulgent  of  fathers.  My  own  father  died  w^hen  I 
was  very  young,  and  I  resolved  to  do  my  best  to  please  a 
prelate,  who  inspired  me  with  such  a  deep  affection. 

"I  had  no  trouble  in  conversing  in  French  or  German 
till  I  got  to  Queenstowm,  or  to  the  Cove,  as  they  called  it 
then.  From  there  to  Dublin  I  had  to  get  along  by  signs. 
Arrived  at  the  capital,  I  pointed  out  my  luggage  to  a  cab- 
man, pronounced  the  talismanic  word,  'All  Hallows,'  and 
away  we  went  at  a  brisk  trot  for  the  university.  It  was 
raining,  and  doubtless  the  heavy  atmosphere  increased  still 
further  the  miserable  homesick  feeling  which  was  fast 
growing  on  me.  As  the  gate  clanged  behind  me,  I  felt  I 
vv^as  shut  out  forever  from  home  and  friends." 

No  doubt  a  young  man  of  Martin's  sunny  disposition 
soon  got  over  his  homesickness,  and  his  warm-hearted  Irish 
collea^es  made  him  soon  at  home  at  All  Hallows.  In  due 
time  Martin  Fox  was  ordained  by  Bishop  Baraga.  He 
was  the  second  priest  ordained  by  Bai'aga,  and  Kev.  E. 
J  acker  the  third. 

Februai-y  1st,  1854,  Bishop  Baraga  paid  his  second 
and  last  visit  to  Dobemig,  w^here  his  cradle  had  stood. 
Again  he  knelt  for  almost  a  whole  hour  at  the  baptismal 
font,  where  he  had  received  the  sacrament  of  regeneration 
fifty-seven  years  before.     With  a  heart  overflowing  with 


sij 


I'M-!. 

in!':. 


!    J     4 


i  ,  , 


f  J  t  .  ■■' : 


w 


I  :  I 

^'  »' 

'■  'iff,- 

I  I!  ft  III  i 


m 


i.     .M!j.vi!i!  ■;■!.:' 


mi 


.liifi 


^^Jil!:!'P;i 


!ii    'i:;:l':l 


■  '1f 


,-:||;| 
i::';liiii 


111! 

'■',1. 


■■it'' 
I 


§!kii 


'i.lill     |;! 

iiiilii 

iillli 


s 


278 


RT.   REV.   PREDERIO  BARAOA. 


gratitude  and  amid  tears  and  sobs  he  called  to  mind  tlio 
many  graces  and  favors  he  had  received  since  that  memo- 
rable day  on  which  he  had  been  made  a  child  of  God  and 
an  heir  of  an  eternal  kingdom.  Then  he  arose  from  his 
knees,  ascended  the  steps  of  the  high-altar,  and  for  an  hour 
preached  a  touching,  soul-stirring  sermon  on  the  greatness 
and  sublimity  of  the  grace  of  Baptism.  Thousands  of  his 
hearers  wept  tears  of  emotion  whilst  listening  to  the  burn- 
ing words  of  the  saintly  bishop.  In  Treffen  he  adminis- 
tered the  holy  Sacrament  of  Confirmation  to  his  grand- 
nephew,  Joseph  Gre^sel.  He  also  preached  in  Laibach,  in 
St.  Martin,  Bischoflack,  Metlika  and  other  places.  Ho 
generally  spoke  on  subjects  not  looked  for  by  his  audience. 
All  hoped  and  wished  to  hear  from  his  lips  something 
about  his  experience  in  the  Indian  missionary  field,  but 
of  that  he  spoke  but  seldom,  and  then  very  little. 

Bishop  Baraga  returned  with  five  priests.  Rev.  Law- 
rence Lautischar,  a  Slavonian,  being  one  of  them.  The 
latter,  after  laboring  for  sometime  in  Arbre  Croche  and 
elsewhere,  went  to  Minnesota  and  worked  for  the  conver- 
sion of  the  Chippewas  near  Red  Lake,  on  which  he  met 
his  death  by  freezing,  on  December  3d,  1858.  He  was  a 
very  zealous  and  pious  priest  Two  brothers,  by  the  name 
of  Roesch,  or  Resch,  also  c^me  over  on  this  occasion.  One 
of  them,  Joseph,  remained  in  the  diocese  as  a  secular 
priest;  the  oth  r,  George,  became  a  Redemptorist.  Be- 
sides the  above-named,  there  were  two  other  priests,  the 
one  a  Tyrolese,  the  other  a  Frenchman,  whose  names  tiie 
writer  has  been  unable  to  ascertain. 


CHAPTER  XLVI. 


B.  BARAGA  RETURNS  HOME. HE  GOES  TO  LA  POINTE,  ONTO- 

NAOAN,  AND  l'aNSE. FIRST  ORDINATION  IN 

SAULT  STE.   MARIE. 


¥'.       ^ 


On  the  21st  of  August,  1854,  after  a  long  and  tedioua 
voyage,  B.  Baraga  arrived  at  his  episcopal  city,  Sault  Ste. 
Marie.  But  his  stav  was  short.  On  the  25th  of  the  samo 
month  he  left  for  La  Pointe,  his  first  mission  in  the  Lake 
Superior  region.  For  almost  a  year  the  good  people  of 
that  island  had  been  mthout  a  pastor,  Father  SkoUa, 
O.S.F.,  having  left  on  the  9th  of  October,  1853,  to  take 
charge  of  the  Menominee  Indians  residing  then  on  the 
Oconto  River.  The  Indians  at  La  Pointe  were  highly  re- 
joiced to  see  their  Father  again,  after  an  absence  of  several 
years,  especially  as  he  had  brought  along  a  priest  to  reside 
pennanently  with  them.  This  was  Rev.  Angelus  Van 
Paemel,  a  Belgian.  His  stay,  however,  was  very  short, 
only  two  months.  Then  came  Rev.  Timothy  Carrie, 
whose  Baptismal  entries  extend  from  September  10th, 
1854,  to  December  25th,  1855,  when  he  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  A.  Benoit  and  the  above-named  Father  Van  Paemel. 
Father  Benoit's  last  Baptism  was  on  the  25th  of  July, 
1858,  about  which  time  he  left  for  France,  when  Rev. 
Angelus  Van  Paemel  took  exclusive  charge  of  the  mission. 
He  was  a  very  zealous,  mortified,  and  pious  man.  His 
successor  was  Rev.  John  Cebul  (or,  as  some  write  the  name, 
Chebul),  who  came  in  Jime,  1860,  and  remained  in  the 
mission  for  twelve  vears.  The  mission  then  included  Su- 
perior,  Fond  du  Lac,  Bayfield,  Bad  River  Reservaticm,  and 
Courtes  Oreilles. 


ii 


«' "  ?  I 


vt:  u 


mi: 


i:  "■  '.in.,.,. 


280 


BT.   r.BV.   FRBDEBIC  BARAOA. 


Bishop  Baraga  remained  eight  days  at  La  Pointe,  dur- 
ing which  time  he  labored  with  his  customary  zeal  for  the 
spiritual  well-being  of  his  former  parishioners,  by  preach- 
ing and  hearing  confessions  almost  all  day  long.  A  major- 
ity of  the  people,  Indians  and  whites,  received  the  holy 
sacraments.  He  then  gave  Confirmation  to  the  candidates 
for  that  holy  sacrament,  whom  he  had  thoroughly  prepared 
by  frequent  instructions. 

By  the  way,  the  writer  wishes  to  remark  that  Baraga, 
both  as  priest  and  as  bishop,  was  greatly  impressed  with 
the  importance  of  Confirmation,  evidence  of  which  we  have 
in  his  Indian  catechism,  where  the  instruction  for  that  holy 
sacrament  takes  up  four  and  a  half  pages,  and  in  his  book 
of  instruction,  the  "Nanagatawendamo-Masinaigan," 
twenty  pages  are  devoted  to  this  subject. 

The  time  he  spent  at  La  Pointe  was  truly  a  season  of 
grace  for  its  people,  a  spiritual  renovation,  a  revival  in  the 
best  sense  of  the  word.  He  remarks  that  this  Confirmation 
at  La  Points  was  the  first  given  by  him  in  his  own  diocese. 

From  La  Pointe  he  went  to  Ontonagan,  which  was  then 
quite  a  stirring  little  town.  He  remained  there  twelve 
days,  during  which  time  he  was  occupied  with  regulating 
the  affairs  of  this  new  congregation  and  hearing  the  con- 
fescions  of  the  Germans  and  Indians.  He  appointed  an 
Irish  priest,  who  could  speak  French  fluently,  as  resident 
pastor.  During  the  absence  of  B.  Baraga  in  Europe  the 
Catholics  had  built  a  beautiful  and  spacious  church,  in 
hopes  of  thereby  sooner  getting  a  i*esident  priest,  which  in 
fact  they  did.  B.  Baraga  blessed  this  new  church  and  also 
administered  Confirmation. 

From  Ontonagan  he  returned  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie  for 
only  a  short  time,  four  days,  during  which  he  gave  Ton- 
'  sure  and  Four  Minor  Orders  to  Rev.  Thiele.  He  then  went 
to  L'Anse,  where  he  had  labored  for  ten  years  prior  to  his 
el(3vation  to  the  episcopal  dignity.  Speaking  of  this  visit 
he  says : 


le  for 

JTon- 
Iwent 
lo  his 

visit 


FIRST  OBDINATION  AT   MARQUETTE. 


281 


"TKe  joy  of  my  dear  children  was  great,  since  their 
earnest  desire  to  see  me  as  bishop  was  fulfilled.  I  re- 
mained in  L'Anse  twelve  days  and  had  to  perform  all 
priestly  functions  alone,  as  in  La  Pointe.  I  had  to  instruct 
the  candidates  myself  for  Confirmation  and  hear  the  con- 
fessions, for  the  missionary,  who  is  now  there,  was  sent 
there  but  lately  and  cannot  yet  speak  Indian.  The  former 
priest  had  asked  to  be  removed  to  Arbre  Crocha  Also  here 
in  L'Anse  all,  or  almost  all,  have  come  to  confession.  On 
the  first  of  October  I  administered  Confirmation  in  this 
my  dear  mission  of  the  Holy  Name  of  Jesus,  at  which  all 
were  filled  with  deep  emotion,  my  dear  children  and  I,  too. 
I  e  7en  wept  with  emotion.  It  was  remarkable  and  consol- 
ing to  behold  the  emotion  and  eagerness  with  which  they 
saw  standing  before  them  their  father  and  missionary  with 
crozier  and  mitre,  and  to  hear  him  speak  in  their  own  lan- 
guage words  of  the  deepest  consolation  to  them.  The  most 
of  our  Indians  here  have  already  seen  bishops,  but  they 
have  never  heard  one  address  them  in  their  own  tongue." 

On  the  7th  of  October  Baraga  returned  home.  On  the 
21st  of  the  same  month  he  ordained  Rev.  Thiele  a  priest. 
The  latter  said  his  first  Mai5s  the  next  day  at  St.  Mary's 
church  in  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  on  which  occasion  the  bishop 
preached  a  sermon  proper  for  the  occasion.  This  was  the 
first  ordination  that  ever  took  place  in  the  diocese  of  Mar- 
quette, and  Father  Thiele  had  the  honor  of  being  the  first 
priest  ordained  by  saintly  Bishop  Baraga, 

As  to  B.  Baraga's  personal  appearance  at  this  time, 
we  will  give  Hon.  Richard  R.  Elliott's  recollection  of  him, 
as  he  saw  him  in  1855.  He  says  (American  Catholic  Re- 
view, 1896,  page  111) : 

"Our  recollection  of  the  personality  of  Bishop  Baraga 
is  quite  distinct ;  but  we  will  describe  him  as  he  appeared 
to  us  in  1855,  when  he  was  Vicar- Apostolic  of  Upper  Mich- 
igan. 

"He  was  then  57  years  old.    He  had  spent  twenty-three 


1?. 


^;''i 


^'. 


f      tia 


282 


RT.    BEY.   FBEDEBIC   BABAGA. 


M'--!tl 


\t§i     J'iiiii'iiifrKti 


i  ''•'(■■■■mm 


Hi 


'«•■ 


years  of  his  mature  life  in  missionary  work  in  tho  lake 
regions ;  he  had  compiled  and  had  printed  the  most  exten- 
sive series  of  Indian  Philological  works  known  in  modern 
times,  the  last  of  which,  a  work  of  334  pages,  in  the  Chip- 
pewa language,  had  just  then  been  published  in  Cincinnati. 

"But  he  had  not  laid  down  the  missionary  cross,  al- 
though, perhaps,  it  was  heavier  to  carry  than  ever  before. 

"He  was  a  man  frail  in  appearance,  whose  weight,  ap- 
parently, would  not  exceed  one  hundred  pounds.  He  was 
short  in  stature,  with  regularly  proportioned  frame,  small 
feet  and  hands ;  his  features  were  classic,  and  mild  in  ex- 
pression ;  his  eyes  were  blue,  but  passive ;  while  his  face 
was  tanned  to  the  color  of  a  half-breed,  the  general  expres- 
sion of  which  tended  to  abstraction.  His  hair,  which  he 
wore  rather  long,  was  a  light  brown ;  it  was  abundant,  but 
apparently  lifeless;  it  had  probably  become  so  from  the 
necessity  of  keeping  his  head  protected  from  the  cold  at- 
mosphere in  which  he  lived  during  ten  months  of  the  year. 

"We  were  present  at  the  second  Plenary  Council  of 
Baltimore  in  October,  1866,  and  we  saw  the  bishop  after 
he  had  been  stricken  down  by  an  apoplectic  stroke,  while 
his  purple  robe  was  stained  with  blood." 

In  the  July  number  of  the  same  magazine  he  says 
(American  Catholic  Review,  1896,  page  609) : 

"No  wonder,  then,  that  when,  after  two  decades  of  toil 
such  as  had  been  his,  we  saw  Frederick  Baraga  in  his  epis- 
copal robes  in  Detroit  in  1855,  we  were  overcome  with  the 
evidence  his  personality  but  too  plainly  indicated,  of  the 
exhaustive  missionary  work  he  had  performed  on  the  Lake 
Superior  Peninsula  and  on  the  shores  of  its  adjacent 
waters. 

"Although  at  the  time  mentioned  his  slight  form  was 
unbent,  the  kindly  gleam,  which  in  former  years  had 
greeted  his  friends  from  his  soft  blue  eyes,  indicating  the 
benevolence  of  his  heart,  was  no  longer  bright,  because 
those  eyes  had  been  partly  seared  by  the  snow-blasts  and 


EFFECTS  OF  EXPOSURES. 


283 


toil 
pi»- 
the 
the 
ake 
oent 


the  sleet  of  Lake  Superior  storms,  as  hurtful  to  human 
sight  as  is  the  hurning  sand  of  an  African  simoon ;  while 
his  face,  from  constant  exposure,  as  we  have  stated,  had 
become  tanned  to  the  color  of  a  half-breed." 


was 
had 
the 

■use 


p!!' 

i          ■ 
1 

t«. 

1  ' ; 

Ai 

'1/    :^ 

,    t      ..   1    If!;'.    ' 

4  ^ 

n\    4 

■     It!   jpf 


.! 


li 


II* 


iit;! 


:;D:';' 


ir::: 


1  ■'■  •'.■'.> 

3^  a#:i 


i  Imi. 


•  V." 


i1 


"t 


CHAPTER  XLVII. 

LABORS  OF  B.   BARAGA  IN  1856;  HE  VISITS  FORT  WILLIAM, 

GRAND  PORTAGE,  SUPERIOR,  LA  POINTE, 

AND  OTHER  PLACES. 

We  give  here  in  full  B.  Baraga's  letter  of  the  Ist  of 
October,  1856.    He  writes  as  follows : 

"This  year  I  began  my  episcopal  visitation  at  Lake 
Superior  on  the  26th  of  June.  On  this  day  I  set  out  from 
Sault  Ste.  Marie,  and  after  a  long  and  tedious  voyage" — 
most  probably  in  a  batteau  or  canoe — "I  arrived,  on  the 
11th  of  July,  at  Fort  William.  I  was  most  agreeably  sur- 
prised when  I  saw  the  beautiful,  though  small,  church, 
which,  under  the  supervision  of  Father  Chone,  had  been 
erected  a  few  years  ago  in  this  mission.  I  preached  to  the 
Indians,  who  were  highly  delighted  to  hear  a  bishop  preach 
in  their  own  language,  a  thing  they  had  never  heard  before. 
On  the  13th  of  July  I  confirmed  here  seventy-seven  In- 
dians, large  and  small ;  for  this  was  the  first  holy  Confirm- 
ation that  was  ever  given  there. 

"From  Fort  William  I  went,  accompanied  by  Father 
Duranquet,  to  Grand  Portage.  Here  I  preached  several 
times  to  the  Indians  and  confirmed  fifty-three  of  them, 
and  this  likewise  was  the  first  Confirmation  ever  conferred 
at  Grand  Portage. 

"From  here  I  went  in  a  birch-bark  canoe  to  the  newly- 
started  little  city  of  Superior,  at  Fond  du  Lac  Bay.  There 
is  no  church  here  as  yet,  but  the  zealous  missionary  "Van 
Paemel  is  working  hard  to  have  one  soon.  There  was  no 
Confirmation  here  because  Rev.  Van  Paemel  was  absent. 
He  was  busy  in  La  Pointe  preparing  people  for  Confirma- 


LABORS   AMONG   THE   MISSIONS. 


285 


Jf 


rred 


tion.  I  preached  on  the  27th  of  July  five  sermons  at  Supe- 
rior, thrtic  in  the  morning  and  two  in  the  afternoon,  in 
English,  French,  and  Indian.  This  is  one  of  the  greatest 
difficulties  of  our  missionaries  that  they  have  such  mixed 
congregations  so  that  they  cannot  satisfy  the  people  with 
one  seniion,  but  are  obliged  to  preach  two  or  three  sermons 
in  different  languages. 

"From  Fond  du  Lac  (means  Superior)  I  went  to  La 
Pointe,  where  my  first  mission  at  Lake  Superior  was  lo- 
cated, which  I  opened  in  1835.  I  preached  here  several 
times,  and  on  the  3d  of  August  confirmed  forty-six  per- 
sons. In  La  Pointe  Confirmation  has  already  been  admin- 
istered several  times.  Bishop  Rese  confirmed  here  in  1838, 
Bishop  Henni  in  1844,  and  I  gave  Confirmation  here  now 
for  the  third  time. 

"From  La  Pointe  I  went  to  Ontonagan.  I  was  agree- 
ably surprised  when  I  saw  the  improvements  which  Rev. 
Father  Dunne  had  made  in  the  church  as  well  as  in  the 
parsonage.  On  the  10th  of  August  I  preached  three  ser- 
mons and  confimied  twelve  persons.  From  here  I  went  to 
the  mines,  where  there  are  already  two  nice  churches, 
which  have  been  erected  this  year  through  the  generous 
contributions  of  the  miners  and  the  zealous  endeavors  of 
Father  Fox.  On  the  17th  of  August  Confirmation  was 
given  fro  the  first  time  at  Minnesota  mine  and  twenty- 
seven  children  and  adults  received  this  holy  sacrament. 
On  the  sair-e  day  the  church  at  Minnesota  mine  was  dedi- 
cated to  Almighty  God  and  named  St.  Mary's,  to  the  great 
satisfaction  and  joy  of  the  multitudes  who  had  come  there. 

"Thence  I  went  to  another  mine,  called  the  Norwich, 
where  also  a  small,  neat  chapel  had  been  built  this  summer. 
On  the  24th  of  August  I  dedicated  this  church  to  Almighty 
God  under  the  name  of  St.  Francis  Xavier.  On  the  same 
Sunday  I  confirmed  thirty-three  persons.  After  these 
visitations  I  returned  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie." 

On  the  first  of  November  of  that  year  (1856)  we  find 


ill 

:  ■          i 

w.  ^ 

'W      1 

I   i 


;  m- 


If'"'    , 

f 

if 

It 


I 


^^ 


266 


BT.    BEV.   FREDERIC   BARAOA. 


I     5 

i 


1  I 


.,;i! 

■'i; 
•# 


an  entry  in  his  journal,  in  which  he  complains  of  his  weak 
stomach  and  poor  digestion ;  and  on  the  30th  of  December 
he  says  that  during  the  foregoing  night  he  had  been  quite 
deaf.  And  this  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  It  is  almost  cer- 
tain that  he  made  the  whole  voyage,  over  500  miles  by  the 
way  he  traveled,  from  Sault  Ste.  Mai'ie  to  Superior,  in  a 
birch  canoe,  or  at  least  made  a  part  of  the  journey  in  an 
open  boat. 

Moreover,  at  times  he  suffered  great  mental  depression 
or  sadness  from  various  reasons,  especially  the  bad  conduct 
of  some  in  his  diocese.    Here  is  one  of  his  entries : 

"Nov.  1,  1856.  This  is  the  third  anniversary  of  my 
consecration ;  a  very  sad  day.  I  might  almost  say :  'Dies 
ille  vertatur  in  tenebras  ....  obscurent  eum  tenebrae 
et  umbrae  mortis ;  occupet  eum  caligo  et  involvatur  amari- 
tudine.' " 

"Dec  15.  A  vei-y  cold  night.  Today  I  put  fresh  relics 
in  my  Pectoral-Cross.  Yesterday  and  today  I  have  again 
thoughts  of  resigning.  Could  I  but  know  the  will  of  God 
in  this  regard,  I  would  soon  be  at  ease  and  determined  for 
one  or  the  other  side." 

Thus  we  see  that  his  elevation  to  the  episcopacy  in- 
creased his  burdens.  He  had  trials  from  without  and  trials 
from  within.  His  deep  sense  of  the  awful  responsibilty 
resting  on  the  episcopal  dignity  was  a  source  of  continual 
anxiety  to  him.  It  was  this  that  gave  him  no  rest,  but 
urged  him  on  to  do  all  he  possibly  could  for  his  people  and 
his  own  soul's  salvation.  He  felt  indeed  that  the  burden 
of  the  episcopacy  is  an  "onus  vel  angelicis  humeris  formi- 
dandum,"  "a  burden  formidable  even  to  the  shoulders  of 
an  angel." 

When  at  home  he  labored  zealously  and  untiringly,  per- 
forming all  the  duties  of  a  simple  priest,  hearing  confes- 
sions, attending  sick-calls,  instructing  the  little  ones,  and 
so  forth.  Thus  on  November  30th  he  made  the  following 
entry : 


'W«»U^. 


VI8IT8   TEE   6I0K   AND    DIEINO. 


287 


"SuTulay ;  preacho<l  today  in  English,  French,  and  In- 
dian. I  began  Indian  catechism,  which  I  mean  to  con- 
tinne  all  wintx^r  on  Sundays.  In  the  evening  I  was  called 
across  the  river  to  Francois  Grant,  to  whom  Father  .  .  . 
had  been  lately.  Old  Alarie  has  received  the  last  sacra- 
ments. 

"Dec.  1st.  This  morning  Father  ....  related  to 
me  that  the  brother  of  Francois  Grant  had  come  to  con- 
duct him  or  me  to  his  very  sick  brother ;  but  Father  .  .  . 
had  said  to  him :  'Do  you  believe  that  the  bishop  will  go 
to  your  brother's  place  at  midnight  V  And  so  the  young 
man  went  away  without  calling  me.  As  soon  as  I  learned 
this  I  immediately  carried  the  Blessed  Sacrament  to  the 
sick  man  and  gave  him  also  Extreme  Unction." 

"Dec.  18.  I  instruct  daily  two  small  Indian  boys, 
Louis  and  Charley,  whom  I  began  to  instruct  the  day  be- 
fore 5'esterday  and  whom  I  shall  instruct  all  winter,  if 
they  but  come." 

We  have  here  the  model  bishop,  a  true  pastor  of  souls. 
To  him  all  are  alike.  The  poor  Indian  boy  is  as  dear  to 
him  as  the  son  of  a  white  millionaire.  Like  his  divine 
Master,  he  regards  in  the  child,  not  riches,  earthly  great- 
ness, and  r  jbility,  but  the  immortal  soul  redeemed  with  the 
Blood  of  Jesus. 


m 


if*' 


CHAPTER  XLVIII. 


ili> 


i    V,--»-:4, 


IIAPrENINOa  DURING  1857. B.  BARAQA  MAKES  IIIS  ANNUAL 

VISIT  TO  THE  PBINCIPAL  MISSIONS  OF  HIS  DIOCESE. 

INTERESTING  COMMUNICATION  OF  HON.  C.  D.  o'bEIEN. 


i':.:. 


If 


%-') 


K, 


fi    -«1 


if!'     ■    I'i'v;'' 


J  111 


',1  \: 


1 


iff"!" 


l;;-i 


ilil 


.14 


liiii: 
sai!i|p|ili;ij!:i; 


ill"' 


As  things  were  not  going  well  at  Mackinac  and  St. 
Ignace,  B.  Baraga  determined  to  go  there,  although  it  was 
in  the  dead  of  winter  and  dreadfully  cold.  As  all  old  set- 
tlers of  the  Northwest  will  remember,  the  winter  of  1857 
was  terribly  long  and  cold  and  the  snow  unusually  deep. 
But  B.  Baraga  heeded  not  the  hardships  of  this  winter^s 
journey.  It  meant  a  hard  voyage  on  sno>w-shoes  in  the  bit- 
ter cold  of  January  for  six  days  going  and  returning.  But 
duty  called  and  in  such  a  case  Baraga  always  obeyed. 
After  three  days  traveling  he  arrived  at  his  destination, 
where  troubles  and  affronts  were  his  portion.  On  Sunday, 
the  18th  of  January,  he  preached  at  Mackinac  a  sermon 
of  reconciliation,  whereby  peace,  at  least  for  a  time,  was 
restored.  Having  accomplished  his  task  he  started,  on  the 
20th,  on  his  homeward  journey.  One  night  he  was  obliged 
to  camp  ill  the  woods,  when  the  thermometer  registered  40 
degrees  below  zero,  and  when  he  was  in  danger,  as  he  states 
in  his  journal,  of  freezing  his  face. 

On  the  7th  of  March  we  find  the  following  entry  in  his 
journal :    ''How  beautiful  and  true  are  these  verses : 

"With  peaceful  mind  thy  race  of  duty  run; 
God  nothing  does,  or  suffers  to  be  done 
But  what  thou  wouldst  thyself,  if  thou  eouldat  see 
Through  all  events  of  things  as  well  as  He." 

On  the  23d  of  April,  1857,  he  received  the  Papal 
Bulls,  in  which  his  church  is  designated :    "Ecclesia  Mari- 


ON   niS   ANNUAL  VIBITINQ   TOUR. 


289 


anopolitana,"  and  ho  himself  is  stylod :    "Episcopu3  Mari- 
anopolitanus." 

On  tho  26th  of  May  he  set  out  from  Saiilt  Sta  Marie 
to  visit  the  missions  of  the  southern  part  of  his  diocese. 
In  Garden  Island  he  preached  against  the  degrading  vice 
of  drunkenness  and  prevailed  upon  all  the  men  to  sign  tlie 
temperance  pledge.  One  after  another  he  visited  the  sta- 
tions along  the  shores  of  Lake  Michigan,  everywhere  per- 
forming all  the  duties  of  a  zealous  bishop. 

He  then  went  to  Detroi*^  to  look  after  tho 'interests  of 
his  Indian  schools.  While  there  he  assisted  at  the  solemn 
dedication  of  St.  Philipp's  German  church  and  the  bless- 
ing of  its  bell.  At  the  request  of  Bishop  Lefevre,  B. 
Baraga  preached  on  this  occai^ion  in  German  and  English, 
and  on  the  following  Sunday  he  delivered  a  German  ser- 
mon at  St.  Joseph's  cliurch.  He  then  returned  home, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  15th  of  July.  As  usual,  his  stay 
was  short.  On  the  20th  of  the  same  month  he  left  to  visit 
the  western  mission  stations  of  his  diocese.  On  the  23d 
he  arrived  at  La  Pointe,  where  he  stayed  four  days  with 
Father  Van  Paemel,  and  on  Sunday  confirmed  twenty-four 
persons.  It  was  on  this  trip  that  he  brought  Hon.  Dillon 
O'Bri'en  and  his  family  to  La  Pointe  to  take  charge  of  the 
school  on  the  island.  The  writer  had  the  honor  of  once 
meeting  with  Mr.  O'Brien  at  Hudson,  when  the  latter  was 
there  selling  his  interesting  work,  "The  Daleys  of  Daleys- 
town."  His  sons,  who  are  able  and  much  respected  law- 
yers, reside  in  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

On  the  23d  of  August  the  bishop  ordained  Rev.  Fr. 
Louis  Sifferath,  who  was  afterwards,  for  several  years,  sta- 
tioned at  Little  Traverse,  now  Harbor  Springs.  He  is  the 
author  of  an  Ottawa  catechism,  a  copy  of  which  is  in  our 
possession.  In  the  same  year  (1857),  on  the  31st  of  Octo- 
ber, Baraga  ordained  Eev.  Patrick  Bernard  Murray. 

We  insert  here  in  full  the  following  most  interesting 
communication  of  Hon.  C.  D.  O'Brien,  of  St.  Paul,  as  it 


'  .!ii;,.  I, 


\^ 


'% 


290 


RT.    BEV.    FBEDEBIC  BARAGA. 


^h\.<'  1.', 


f:| 


^mm 


l';-i 


:§ 


iWeZ 


will  prove  agreeable  ''  -uing  for  many  of  our  i*ea(lers  at 
the  west  end  of  Lake  Superior.    He  says : 

"I  remember  very  well  our  arrival  at  La  Pointe,  al- 
though I  had  forgotten  the  precise  day  of  the  month  until 
reminded  of  it  by  an  extract  from  Bishop  Baraga's  diary, 
it  was  the  23d  day  of  July,  1857,  and  I  had  come  with  my 
father  and  mother  and  the  other  members  of  tlie  family, 
from  Detroit,  on  the  steamer  Illinois,  then  commanded  by 
Captain  Wilson,  who  afterwards  was  drowned  on  the  oc- 
casion of  the  sinking  of  the  Lady  Elgin.  We  arrived  some- 
time during  the  night  or  early  in  the  morning,  and  went 
directly  from  the  dock  to  the  old  church,  being  accompanied 
by  Bishop  Baraga.  I  remember  that  we  waited  there  until 
daylight,  and  afterwards  took  possession  of  a  house  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  where  we  lived  during  our  residence  on 
the  island. 

''My  recollections  of  Bishop  Baraga  is  rather  indis- 
tinct. I  remember  him  as  a  rather  small,  slender  man, 
exceedingly  reserved  in  his  demeanor,  and  with  a  very 
sweet  low  voice.  He  w^as  idolized  by  the  Indians,  the  half- 
breeds  and  the  old  voyag-eus,  among  whom  he  had  spent 
so  many  years,  and  each  seemed  to  have  an  intense  and 
personal  affection  for  him. 

"At  the  time  we  came  to  La  Pointe,  it  was  a  busy, 
hustling  little  place.  The  dock  was  a  large  structure, 
iii'Tiishing  the  safest  possible  landing  for  all  boats.  It 
had  upon  it  a  large  warehouse,  and  on  the  shore  adjoining 
it,  there  extended  along  the  lake  shore,  towards  Pointe  De 
Fret,  quite  a  little  row^  of  houses ;  some  occupied  as  stores, 
some  as  warehouses  and  others  as  cooj)er  shops.  There 
was  quite  a  large  building  which  was  used  as  a  hotel  on  the 
left  hand  side  as  you  passed  up  from  the  dock,  and  on  thfe 
right,  another  large  one,  or  at  least  large  as  I  recollect  it, 
which  was  used  as  a  store  bv  Julius  Austrian.  Behind 
this  building  was  a  grass  plot,  and  fronting  on  that,  a 
long  row  of  one-story  houses  which  had  been  the  offices  of 


AN    INTEREBTING   ITEM. 


291 


the  American  Fur  Company.     Behind  this  row  of  build- 
ings was  quite  a  large  garden,  suiTOunded  by  a  high  stock- 
ade fence,  and  in  my  time,  that  garden  produced  apples, 
cherries  and  currants,  besides  all  the  ordinary  vegetables. 
'^Behind  the  garden  was  the  old  church,  standing  in 
the  church-yard  where,  at  that  time,  the  dead  were  buried 
on  the  surface  of  the  ground,  the  coffin  being  laid  upon  the 
ground  and  surrounded  by  a  little  frame-work  of  logs 
which  was  filled  with  sand  from  the  lake  shore.     At  a 
subsequent  period  Bishop  Bira^a  required  all  the  bodies 
to  be  interred  in  the  groimd.     The  school-house  stood  in 
the  church  yard,  and  there  must  have  been  an.  average 
attendance  of  from  twenty  to  forty  pupils  of  both  sexes. 
"The  town  proper  consisted  of  clusters  of  houses  built 
on  each  side  of  a  road-way  ininning  east  and  west,  close  to 
the  lake  shore,  ternMnating  on  the  west  Pointe  De  Fret,  and 
on  the  east  at  Middle  Fort,  which  was  either  an  episco- 
palian or  a  presbyterian  mission,  but  at  which  no  mission- 
ary was  stationed  during  my  time.     Still  farther  to  the 
east  was  what  was  called  Old  Fort,  consisting  of  a  clearing 
on  the  eastern  side  of  the  island,  from  which  all  of  the 
buildings  had  been  removed,  but  which  had  grown  up  to 
grass  and  second  growth  timber. 

"There  were  about  three  or  four  white  families  on  the 
island ;  the  people  were  mostly  half-breeds,  the  descend- 
ants of  intermarriage  between  the  old  voyageurs  and  the 
Indian  woman,  and  nearly  all  the  men  of  middle  or  beyond 
middle  life  were  Canadian  French  and  had  been  voyageurs 
or  coureurs  des  hoi^,  and  had  evidently  settled  upon  the 
island  to  pass  their  old  age  there  with  their  families.  In 
addition  to  the  groups  of  houses  at  La  Pointe  proper  and 
Middle  Fort,  there  was  a  settlement  upon  the  western  side 
of  the  island,  at  a  distance  of  one  or  two  miles. 

"The  people  were  a  most  innocent,  affectionate  and 
happy  people.  They  made  their  own  boats  and  nets,  and 
the  barrels,  half-barrels  and  quarter-barrels  in  which  they 


mi 


:'J  .  ^ 


I 


m 


I 

il 


s 


'  ': "  ■■■■  ft'/ 

-  i 


''!ri: 


«i 


292 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


packed  their  fish.  During  the  winter  thej  went  out  trap- 
ping. They  raised  potatoes  and  other  root  crops,  and  one 
or  two  of  the  white  men  occaijionally  raised  wheat  and  oats, 
but  very  little  of  it.  There  were  only  two  or  three  horses 
in  the  entire  settlement,  and  one  or  two  cows.  In  winter 
nearly  all  the  hauling  was  done  with  dog  teams;  nearly 
every  family  owning  from  three  to  four  dogs.  These  ani- 
mals were  fe<i  upon  fish  heads  taken  from  the  fish  in  the 
fall,  filled  frozen  into  barrels  and  kept  during  the  winter 
for  dog  food.  During  the  entire  time  of  my  residence  on 
the  island  I  never  k^^ew  of  a  case  of  larceny  but  one,  and 
that  was  committed  by  a  negro  who  had  been  left  there  by 
some  steamboat.  I  remember  the  thrill  of  horror  that  went 
through  the  entire  community  at  the  idea  of  such  a  crime 
being  committed.    DriuikeniiGss  was  rare. 

"The  great  events  were  the  arrival  of  the  first  steam- 
boat in  the  spring.  Payment  time  in  the  fall,  when  every- 
body went  to  Bad  River  on  the  Reservation  to  attend  the 
payment.  Christmas  day,  when  we  had  midnight  Mass, 
and  '^ew  Year's  day,  when  visits  were  exchanged,  and 
everybody  who  had  a  house  kept  it  open. 

"In  the  spring  and  fall  great  flights  of  migratory  birds 
used  to  light  upon  the  island  and  were  killed  for  food ;  in 
June  pigeons  were  particularly  numerous.  The  berry  sea- 
son included  strawberries,  raspberries  and  blueberries,  and 
altogether  the  life,  while  perhaps  monotonous,  was  of  great 
simplicity  and  singular  beauty. 

"From  the  time  navigation  ceased  until  it  opened,  we 
were  an  isolated  community.  Provisions  were  stored  and 
provided  for  in  the  fall,  precisely  as  if  one  were  going  on 
a  voyage,  and  the  first  boats  used  to  bring  small  packages 
of  meat  and  sausages  in  their  ice^chests,  which  were  sold 
to  such  of  the  inhabitauts  as  could  pay  for  them,  and  were 
considered  rare  delicacies. 

"A  more  simple,  hospitable,  honest  community  could 
not  exist  anywhere,  and  there  was  an  element  of  cheerful- 


iy 


AN   INTERESTING   ITEM. 


293 


ness  and  good  nature  that  permeated  the  entire  community 
which  I  have  never  seen  since. 

"The  old  voyageurs  were  a  singularly  interesting  class 
of  men  ;  uneducated,  perhaps,  hut  of  a  singular  dignity  of 
manner  and  speech  and  of  the  utmost  morality ;  scrupulous 
in  the  performance  of  their  duties  both  to  God  and  man. 
On  Sundays,  in  the  little  old  church,  the  he^id  of  the  family 
always  sat  with  stately  dignity  on  the  outside  of  the  pew, 
and  while  they  indulged  in  chewing  tobacco  during  the 
service  to  a  vei'y  large  extent,  yet  the  habit  was  conducted 
in  such  a  simple  and  dignified  w^ay  that  it  ceased  to  sur- 
prise or  annoy  anybody.  The  choir  in  the  church  included 
four  or  five  of  these  old  men  who  sat  within  the  chancel 
and  sung  the  responses  and  all  of  the  hymns.  I  can  almost 
see  them  now,  clad  in  their  white  surplices  and  red  shirts, 
intoning  with  the  utmost  dignity  all  of  the  responses. 

"Father  Von  Paemel  was  a.  most  devoted  missionary ; 
a  man  of  rigid  and  austere  demeanor,  but  who  devoted  him- 
self to  the  care  of  his  people  with  an  utter  disregard  of  his 
own  comfort.  'No  matter  Avhat  the  distance  might  be,  the 
condition  of  the  weather,  or  the  difficulties  to  be  overcome, 
he  instantly  departed  on  a  sick  call,  whether  with  a  dc^- 
team,  on  snow-shoes,  or  in  a  boat,  to  penetrate  any  part  of 
the  wilderness  where  his  services  might  be  required.  With 
him  was  associated  for  a  short  time  Father  Benoit,  a 
French  missionary,  who,  unable  to  endure  the  rigors  of  the 
climate,  returned  to  France  within  a  year  or  two.  These 
were  succeeded  by  Father  Chebul,  who  is,  I  believe  and 
hope,  still  living.  Without  the  austerity  of  Father  Von 
Paemel,  Father  Chebul  was  an  ideal  missionary,  besides 
which  he  was  an  accomplished  linquist.  Three  months 
after  his  arrival  at  La  Pointe,  he  preached  in  French, 
Chippewa  and  English,  having  learned  the  latter  two  dur- 
ing the  ninety  days  previous  to  the  sermon.  I  have  often 
been  told  by  the  voyageurs  how  in  the  winter  time  they  have 
tracked  him  going  to  or  coming  from  a  distant  sick  call 


n 


■filll 


'  'i' 


11 


ii  •iii 


fsx 


ilii 


1  -^-Mi 


294 


RT.   BEV.   FREDERIC  BABAQA. 


by  the  blood  oozing  through  his  moccasins  where  the  snow- 
shoe  strings  had  pressed  upon  his  too  tender  feet. 

"There  were  many  stories  extant  among  the  people  of 
Bishop  Baraga,  and  of  the  many  wonderful  things  which 
they  said  had  been  effected  by  his  prayers ;  of  his  calmness 
in  dangers  and  of  his  devotion  to  his  people  in  the  arduous 
duties  of  his  diocese,  traveling  in  summer  by  boat  and 


caiioe. 


and  in  winter  with  dog-teams  and  on  snow-shoes. 


There  was  one  particular  story  they  were  fond  of  telling. 
It  was,  that  on  one  occasion  towards  spring.  Bishop  Baraga 
was  traveling  with  a  guide  along  the  shore  of  Lake  Supe- 
rior, and  in  crossing  a  wide  bay  at  some  distance  from  the 
shore,  the  ice  suddenly  parted,  and  he  and  his  guide  were 
being  rapidly  blown  out  into  the  open  lake,  where,  of 
course,  certain  death  awaited  them.  The  guide,  in  a  panic, 
threw  himself  at  the  feet  of  the  bishop  and  besought  absolu- 
tion, but  the  bishop  said  to  him,  calmly,  that  he  should 
repress  his  fears,  that  God  would  not  permit  a  missionary 
on  duty  to  a  sick  member  of  his  flock  w4io  needed  his  min- 
istration, to  be  cut  off,  and  calmly  kneeling  on  the  ice  pro- 
ceeded to  pray.  The  man  then  told  how  the  wind  veered 
around,  blew  the  ice  back  to  the  shore,  thus  enabling  them 
to  regain  it,  when  they  found  that  instead  of  being  in  dan- 
ger or  delayed  they  had  actually  been  forwarded  on  their 
journey  by  the  movement  of  the  ice. 

"C.  D.  O'Brien." 


^iiKSI^^:; 


CHAPTER  XLIX. 


B.   BARAGA  ATTENDS   THE   11.    PROVINCIAL   COUNCIL   OF   CIN- 
CINNATI    AND     HAS     THREE     OF     HIS     INDIAN     WORKS 

PRINTED. HIS   HARDSHIPS   ON   THE    WAY. HE    VISITS 

THE    MISSIONS    OF    LAKE    MICHIGAN    AND    LAKE    SUPE- 
RIOR. 


On  the  12th  of  February,  1858,  BLshop  Baraga  de- 
parted from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  go  overland  to  Toronto 
and  thence  by  rail  to  Cincinnati.  He  had  a  twofold  object 
in  view.  The  first  and  main  object  was  to  attend  the  IT. 
Provincial  Council  of  Cincinnati,  which  opened  on  Sun- 
day, the  2d  of  May,  and  ended  on  the  following  Sunday, 
May  9th.  Another  very  important  matter  he  had  in  view 
was  the  printing  of  his  prayer  book  in  both  the  Ottawa  and 
Chippewa  dialects  and  also  of  his  Chippewa  "Gagikwe- 
Masinaigan." 

On  this  winter  journey  he  suffered  great  hardships. 
For  the  first  three  days  he  traveled  tolerably  well  in  a 
sleigh,  but  on  the  16th  he  was  obliged  to  use  an  Indian 
dog-train,  a  "carriole,"  as  they  were  called,  drawn  by  three 
dogs.  Wherever  he  stayed  over  night  he  said  night  and 
morning  prayers,  in  common  with  the  family  and  others 
present,  preached,  baptized  and  performed  his  other 
priestly  functions  as  circumstances  might  call  for.  Baraga 
was  every  inch  a  priest,  and  that  at  all  times  and  every- 
where, ^le  never  lost  sight  of  his  priestly  dignity  and 
seized  upon  every  occasion  to  exercise  his  holy  ministry 
for  the  instruction,  edification,  and  salvation  of  those  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact.    What  a  lesson  for  priests ! 

From  Jibaonaning  B.  Baraga  traveled  with  some  mail 


:;illi' 


ill 


mm 


296 


RT.  BBV.    FREDEBIO  BARAGA. 


carriers  to  Pinatangwishing.  A  little  beyond  French 
river  he  stopped  over  night  in  a  very  small  house  belong- 
ing to  an  Indian.  On  the  18th  of  February  he  has  the  fol- 
lowing entry  in  his  journal : 

"From  here  to  the  lodges  (wigwams)  of  some  Indians, 
where  I  fared  a  little  better  than  if  I  had  lodged  outdoors. 

"Feb.  19.  From  here  to  the  empty  house  of  a  mail 
carrier,  without  door  or  window^  where  I  spent  the  night 
miserably  on  the  'carriole.'  " 

He  finally  arrived  at  Toronto,  where  he  took  the  train 
to  Buffalo  and  Cincinnati,  arriving  at  the  last  named  city 
on  the  25th  of  February.  At  Cincinnati  he  lodged  with 
F.  Hammer,  "where  I  will  stay  until  my  works  shall  have 
been  printed."  While  at  Cincinnati  he  received  the  joy- 
ful news  that  the  "Ludwig  Mission  Society"  of  Munich, 
Bavaria,  had  sent  him  six  hundred  dollars  for  his  diocese. 

On  Sunday,  the  11th  of  April,  he  celebrated  Pontifical 
High  Mass  at  St.  Mary's  church,  on  which  occasion  he 
gave  first  holy  Communion  to  the  children,  and  in  the 
afternoon  he  confirmed  seventy-five  children  and  adults  in 
the  same  church.  During  all  this  time  he  was  occupied 
superintending  the  printing  of  his  Indian  works,  reading 
and  correcting  proofs,  a  difficult  task,  as  printers  of  Indian 
works  do  not  understand  a  word  of  what  they  are  print- 
ing, and  therefore  are  very  liable  to  make  mistakes. 

B.  Baraga  also  attended  the  II.  Provincial  Council  of 
Cincinnati  from  the  2d  to  the  9th  of  May.  We  regret 
being  unable  to  give  any  particulars  of  the  part  he  took  in 
the  deliberations  of  said  council. 

Finally,  on  the  25th  of  May,  after  a  sojourn  of  three 
months,  he  left  Cincinnati  to  return  to  his  Episcopal  See. 
With  a  heart  full  of  gratitude  to  God  and  his  generous 
benefactors,  he  remarks  that  during  his  stay  in  Cincinnati 
he  had  received  over  four  hundred  dollars,  a  great  help 
for  his  poor  diocese,  the  missions  of  which  were  for  the 


French 
>elong- 
he  f  ol- 


idiansy 
tdoors. 
a  mail 
)  night 

e  train 

ed  city 

d  with 

11  have 

be  jay- 

[unich, 

liocese. 

ntifical 

lion  he 

in  the 

ults  in 

upied 

eading 

Indian 

print- 

loil  of 
regret 
>k  in 


'i*l 


three 
dSee. 

lerous 
kinnati 
It  help 

)r  the 


1 1  j 


■^i 


'I      r 


(ipiiiti&'v 


1 


1   K'll: 


!fc> 


I:   0h  '■ 


■    ■"        ."''TO*,".":- 


f-t 


1f 


i! 


^fi 


Ji'T^'Ii  ■'', 


ft  ,i|iV%!''. 

»•  I'iii  ill!. : 


RT.  REV.  KiXATirs  MKAK,  D.D, 


•■'i':m:l 


ris 


l^iiW 


**S«W!K®P557 


4  ^j^"    "^ 


^  -'^  ^  r^ 


YieiTS  VARIOUB   MISSIONS. 


297 


greater  part  among  Indians,  -^viio  contributed  little  or  noth- 
ing towards  the  support  of  their  missionaries. 

On  the  29th  o.'  May  he  arrive<i  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie, 
where  he  rested  but  a  week,  and  then  set  out  to  visit  the 
Indian  missions  of  Lower  Michigan  in  the  southern  part 
of  his  diocese.  On  Sunday,  the  13th  of  June,  he  blessed 
F.  Weikamp's  church  and  cemetery  at  Cross  Village, 
preached  twice  that  day  in  Indian  and  confirmed  twenty- 
seven  persons.  The  15tli  and  16th  he  spent  at  Garden 
Island  "in  amaritudine  cordis  mei"  on  accoimt  of  the  uni- 
versal prevalence  of  drinking  on  the  part  of  the  Indians 
there.  After  confirming  thirty  persons  on  the  island,  he 
returned  to  Cross  Village.  The  next  place  he  visited  was 
Middle  Village,  where  he  preached  twice  to  the  Indians 
and  confirmed  eleven. 

On  the  22d  of  June  he  went  to  Cheboygan,  where  he 
heard  oonfe^ions  for  two  days  in  spite  of  the  heat,  which 
was  so  oppressive  that  the  very  candles  on  the  altar  melted.. 
He  then  returned  to  Little  Traverse,  where,  on  Saturday, 
he  heard  confessions  until  almost  midnight.  On  Sunday 
he  preached  two  most  pathetic  sermons  to  his  former 
parishioners  and  then  heard  confessions  in  great  numbers ; 
the  following  day  he  was  also  confined  to  his  wnfessional 
until  midnight.  Thus  the  good  people  of  tliis  place,  the 
"Arbre  Croche"  of  former  days,  appreciated  and  spiritu- 
ally utilized  the  presence  of  their  father  and  bishop. 
Father  Sifferath  was  then  stationed  there,  whose  goodness 
and  humility  Baraga  extols  in  his  journal. 

From  Little  Traverse  he  v/ent  to  Eagletow^n  (Grand 
Traverse),  w^here  he  confirmed  twenty  persons.  This  mis- 
sion and  several  others  were  under  the  care  of  Father, 
afterwards  Bishop,  Mrak,  w^ho  has  devoted  a  long  and  most 
useful  life  to  the  care  of  the  poor  Indians  of  Michigan. 
He  is  still  alive  and  resides  at  Marquette,  where  the  writer 
had  the  honor  of  forming  his  acquaintance  some  two  years 
ago.     He  was  then  eighty-five  years  of  age,  almost  fifty 


'f\ 


1I 


■U.  , 


i> 


iWi  >^ 


\r 


1 '.  • 


!  f 


';ti  ■ 


a:il. 


298 


BT.   BEY.   FREDEBIC   BAUAGA. 


of  which  ho  had  spent  on  the  Indian  missionary  field.  Not- 
withstanding his  great  age  he  was  comparatively  healthy 
and  active.  From  him  we  gleaned  many  items  of  interest 
in  regard  to  his  saintly  countryman,  Bishop  Baraga.  It 
was  there,  also,  we  enjoyed  the  kind  hospitality  of  our 
former  classmate  of  the  Salesianum,  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop 
\  ertlii,  of  Marquette,  who  kindly  loaned  us  B.  Baraga's 
journal,  from  the  pages  of  which  we  gather  most  of  our 
information  in  regard  to  B.  Baraga's  episcopal  activity. 

Simday,  tho  11th  of  July,  B.  Baraga  spent  at  "Cat- 
head," where  he  preached  four  times  that  day  in  French 
and  Indian.  He  then  went  to  Mackinac,  where,  on  the  fol- 
lowing Sunday,  he  confirmed  forty-five  persons.  After  his 
return  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  on  the  24:th  of  the  same  month, 
he  ordained  Rev,  P.  V.  Moyce,  who,  however,  did  not  rer 
main  long  in  the  diocese. 

As  was  his  custom,  B.  Ba.raga  did  not  stay  long  at  the 
*^Sault."  He  may  justly  be  called  the  itinerant  bishop, 
for  he  was  "always  on  the  go."  He  had  been  at  home  but 
a  few  days  when  he  left  again  to  visit  the  western  portion 
of  his  diocese.  Fortunately,  the  writer  has  a  letter  of 
Baraga,  written  to  the  "Wahrheits-Freund,"  under  date 
of  October  24th,  1858,  in  which  we  find  an  interesting  ac- 
count of  his  trip.    We  will  give  it  in  full : 

"Most  Respected  Editor — Please  publish  the  following 
account  in  your  valuable,  widely  circulated  and  much  read 
paper,  the  'Wahrheits-Freund.'  It  may  be  of  interest  to 
some  of  vour  readers. 

"My  mission  diocese  is  divided  into  two  parts.  A  part 
of  it  borders  on  Lake  Michigan,  which  is  south  of  my  dwell- 
ing place,  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  The  other  is  northwest  of 
here  on  Lake  Superior.  The  first  part  of  the  diocese  I 
visited  in  the  fore  part  of  last  summer  and  sent  an  account 
of  said  visit  to  your  paper.  The  northwestern  part  I 
visited  later  on,  and  three  days  ago  I  returned  from  this 
missionary  visitation. 


Not- 
oaltliy 
iterest 
a.  It 
>f  our 
bishop 
raga's 
>f  our 

ty. 

"Cat- 
i'rench 
he  fol- 
ber  his 
nonth, 
lot  re- 

at  the 
lishop, 
le  but 
ortion 
:er  of 
date 
ac- 


)wing 
read 
it  to 


part 
Iwell- 
Ist  of 


>uiit 

irt  I 

this 


HI 


I 


i( 


[ 


m^ 


m 


i 

< 

"  i 

'  1 

KT.   RK\'.  .lOIIX   VKirnX,  D.D. 


AT    HIv^    FinST    MISSION    AGAIN. 


299 


**()ii  tlio  first  of  Antni.Ht  I  arrivcNl  at  La  l^ointc  Tliis 
mission  is  ovtu*  dear  U>  mo,  Inraiiso  it  sva.s  tin,'  firnt  I 
foiiiKlod  at  Lake  SuiuM-ior.  On  the  21)tli  of  July,  is:jr),  I 
landcil  th<M*o  for  tlio  first  tiiiio  ami  was  i-r'^mvcmI  with  great 
spiritual  joy  by  tlie  few  (^atliolics  who  resided  there  at 
that  time.  To  my  great  consolation  1  found  much  to  do  in 
instnicting  the  catcchisumens,  who  rto<'k(Hl  hither  in  great 
numbers,  and  the  baptisms  of  converts  were  very  numerous. 
At  my  present  visitation  I  remained  there  twelve  days, 
preached,  baptized,  and  gave  holy  (confirmation.  Thirty 
Indians  were  con  finned  here. 

"From  La  Pointe  I  went  with  the  zealous  missionary, 
Rev.  Van  Paemel,  to  Fond  du  Lac,  a  mission  station,  which 
I  had  also  visited  for  the  first  time  and  foun('ed  in  1835. 
At  my  first  visit  there  I  had  many  baptisms  and  the  same 
in  my  subsequent  visits.  On  the  15th  of  August  of  this 
year  I  administered  the  sacrament  of  Confinnation,  forty 
of  my  dear  Indians  being  confirmei!.  This  was  the  first 
Confirmation  that  ever  took  place  in  Fond  du  Lac.  A  per- 
son can  imagine  the  feeling  of  a  bishop,  who,  surrounded, 
by  those  simple-hearted,  faithful  (Christians,  confers  holy 
Confinnation  in  a  mission,  in  which  this  holy  and  strength- 
giving  sacrament  had  never  before  been  administered. 

"The  next  station  I  visited  was  Portage  Lake,  a  min- 
ing station,  the  inhabitants  consisting  of  Irish,  Cana- 
dians, and  many  Germans.  Rev.  Father  Jacker,  of  L'Anso, 
usually  attends  this  mission.  After  I  had  preached  in 
English,  French  and  German,  and  given  confinnation  on 
the  Sunday  I  sp-nt  there,  wlr'ch  confirmation  was  also  the 
first  in  this  place,  I  made  arrangements  for  the  building 
of  a  church  on  the  lot  which  had  been  bought  for  that  pur- 
pose. I  opened  a  subscription  or  collection,  and  I  myself 
subsCi'^  1  a  sum  of  money,  and  in  a  short  time,  I  might 
say,  in  a  few  moments,  one  hundred  and  thirty  dollars 
were  collected.  We  have  at  present  a  large  school  house, 
in  which  the  missionary  says  Mass  and  preaches  whenever 


tJiJPiil 


"All 


I  HI 
i  ifwm 


i'iti*  'I'll' 


n 


t 


!i 


V 


j  1 


*!<■ 


'"■'I'^'fli 


'Ml 


300 


TIT.   BEV.   FBEDEBIC  BABAGA. 


he  comes,  but  it  is  too  small  for  the  many  Catholics  who 
are  here.    1  hope  that  we  shall  soon  have  a  suitable  church. 

"The  next  mission  1  visited  was  L'Anse.  This  mission 
I  foimded  in  1843  and  I  was  missionary  there  for  ten 
years.  It  is  now  under  the  spiritual  care  of  Rev.  Edward 
Jacker,  who  works  hard  in  order  to  preserve  the  Indians 
already  converted  in  a  truly  Christian  life  and  to  instruct 
them  more  and  more  in  tlie  Catholic  religion,  as  also  to 
bring  pagans  over  to  the  holy  church  of  God.  Father 
Jacker  deserves  great  credit  for  what  he  does  for  the  mis- 
sion school,  which  he  teaches  every  day  for  from  five  to  six 
hours. 

"Some  of  my  most  consoling  reminiroences  are  con- 
nected with  til  is  mission.  When  I  enter  the  small,  un.pre- 
tentious  missionary  room,  which  the  very  zealous  mission- 
ary, Edward  Jacker,  now  occupies,  I  remember  the  many 
consolations  and  spiritual  joys  I  enjoyed  here  when  I  saw 
how  a  deeply  sunken  band  of  Indians,  entirely  demoral- 
ized through  drunkenness,  had  been  changed  into  a  con- 
gregation of  fervent  Christians  through  the  powerful  and 
beneficent  influence  of  the  holy  word  of  the  Cross,  which 
God  in  His  unfathomable  mercy  caused  to  be  preached  to 
them  in  their  own  expressive  language.  In  this  li+tle  room, 
too,  I  have  labored  much  for  Indian  literature.  It  was  here 
I  composed  the  Indian  Grammar  j  nd  Dictionary  and  a 
comprehensive  work  f-^r  our  missior.s. 

^'On  Sunday,  the  12th  of  September,  I  preached  t-o  tlie 
Indians  in  the  morning  tnd  afternoon  and  conferred  Con- 
firmation on  thirty  of  them,  Avho  had  been  prepared  for 
this  sacrament. 

"Another  mission  str/ion  which -gives  me  much  con- 
solation and  spiritual  joy  is  the  mini  'g  station  Minnesota. 
Here  and  in  the  surrounding  mines  is  fhe  largest  congre- 
gation of  Catholics  in  the  whole  diocese,  Irish,  Canadians 
or  French  from  Canada,  and  esjKXjiaJiy  many  Germans. 
Here  Rev.  Martin  I^V<y,  a  Pruseian,  works  and  labors  with 


LAUDS  A  FAITHFUL  PASTOR. 


301 


untiring  zeal  and  wonderful  perseverance.  He  is  the 
builder  of  three  churches,  two  of  which  are  remarkably 
beautiful  and  spacious.  They  are,  it  is  true,  built  of  wood, 
but  inside  they  are  plastered  in  such  a  manner  that  they 
look  as  if  they  had  been  constructed  of  solid  masoniy  and 
ceiled.     And  the  architectural  stvle  of  these  churches  is 

t,' 

so  beautiful  and  symmetrical  that  it  is  a  pleasure  to  look 
at  them.  The  pei*sev^ering  zeal  with  which  Rev.  Father 
Fox  labors,  not  only  in  building  churches,  but  also  in  at- 
tending his  various  missions,  deserves  great  praise.  Al- 
though he  is  German,  he  speaks  and  preaches  very  fluently 
in  English  and  French,  and  he  is  loved  as  much  by  the 
Fi'ejich  and  Irish  as  he  ifs  by  the  Germans.  Forty-five  per- 
sons were  confirmed  here. 

**I  next  visited  another  mining  station,  where  another 
German  priest,  Rev.  Louis  Thiele,  labors  with  unflagging 
zeal,  in  word  and  in  deed.  He  has  several  missions  to  at- 
tend, of  which  the  most  important  are  called  Cliff  Mine 
and  Eagle  Harbor.  He  always  preaches  in  three  languages, 
English,  French,  and  German,  because  the  people  of  his 
mission  belong  to  those  three  nationalities.  Rev.  Thiele  is 
already  busy  building  two  churches.  The  first  one  at 
Eagle  Harbor  is  large  and  very  beautiful  and  as  an  addi- 
tion to  the  church  there  is  built  a  large  and  beautiful  house 
for  the  missionary.  He  nad  great  trouble  to  build  such  a 
beautiful  and  large  church  with  the  scanty  means  at  his 
disposal.  May  God  rewf.rd  him  in  eternity !  Rev.  Thiele 
also  exerti}  himself  very  much  in  converting  Protestants. 
When  I  was  at  his  place  tie  again  baptized  four  Protest- 
ants, English-speaking  persons,  whom  he  had  previously 
properly  instructed,  and  received  them  solemnly  into  the 
Church  of  God. 

''The  mines  hitherto  spoken  of  are  copper  mines.  But 
we  have  also  very  productive  and  really  inexhaustible  iron 
mines.  At  Marquette  is  such  an  iron  mine,  and  we  have 
there  a  church  and  congregation,  which  is  attended  by  a 


m 


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1. 


302 


BT.    RE\.   FREDEKIC  BARAGA. 


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lli 


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French  priest,  l^cv.  Diiroc.  He,  too,  has  built  a  small 
chnrch  and  parsoiia^o.  But  as  the  church  had  become  too 
small,  he  enlarged  it  last  summer." 

Thus  the  good  bishop  lal)ored  with  tireless  zeal  for  the 
"flock,  over  which  the  Holy  Ghost  had  placed  him  as  bishop 
to  rule  the  Ohurch  of  God,  which  He  had  acquired  by  His 
Blood."  But  he  was  not  spared  the  bitter  cup  of  sorrow, 
sadness,  and  interior  desolation  of  spirit,  with  which  God 
in  His  unscrutable  wisdom  tries  His  faithful  servants 
from  time  to  time.  He  had  ordained  a  priest,  whose  sole 
object  in  entering  the  priesthood  seems  to  have  been  "a 
large  congregation  with  a  big  salary."  Of  course,  B. 
Baraga  never  knew  the  man's  disposition ;  for  he  would 
never  have  "imjxvsed  hands  on  him"  had  he  known  his 
sordid  love  of  money.  He  gave  to  the  unhappy  priest  his 
dimissorials,  thus  ridding  the  diocese  of  this  ^  hireling. 
But  such  occurrences  deeply  saddened  the  noble  and  sensi- 
tive heart  of  Baraga.  Hence  we  find,  under  date  of  Nov. 
1st,  the  following  entry : 

"Nov.  1.  Fifth  anniversary  of  my  consecration.  Sad ! 
The  past  saddens  me;  the  present  torments  me;  the  future 
fills  me  with  uneasiness.  /  would  infinitely  prefer  to  he 
an  Indian  missionary/' 

But  he  consoles  himself  with  the  i  eflection : 

"Look  not  mournfully  into  the  past,  it  cannot  return; 
Wisely  improve  the  present,  it  is  thine; 
Go  forth  to  meet  the  shadowy  future,  without  fear 
and  with  a  manly  heart." 


'W 


I  ■i 

1  "S- 


CHAPTER   L. 


DEATH    OF   RFV.    LAUTISCIIAR. B.    BARAGA    VISITS    HIS    MIS- 
SION    ^     ATIONS. ARRIVAL    OF     FATHER    CHEBUL.  

BARAGA^S  OPINION  IN  REGARD  TO  THE  FEASIBILITY  OF 

FORMING  INDIAN  PRIESTS  AND  SISTERS. INTERESTING 

REMINISCENCES    OF    REV.    FATHER    CHEBUL    ABOUT    B. 
BARAGA. 


On  the  1st  (d  Febniary,  1859,  B.  Barxiga  made  the  fol- 
lowing entry  in  his  journal : 

''Today  I  received  a  number  of  lettei*s ;  among-st  others 
one  from  Rev.  Pierz,  with  the  sad  news  that  the  remarkably 
zealous  missionary,  Father  Lautischar,  had  frozen  to  death 
on  the  night  of  the  3d  of  December  on  Red  Lake." 

Under  date  of  the  23d  of  June,  1859,  B.  Baraga  wrote 
as  follows  to  the  Leopoldine  Society : 

"A  few  days  ago  I  returned  from  a  missionary  visita- 
tion journey  and  1  hasten  to  send  a  short  account  thereof. 
I  came  back  from  this  journey  half  sick  and  exhausted,  for 
it  was  a  trip  full  of  hardships  through  all  our  Ottawa  mis- 
sions. On  these  missions  one  has  either  to  go  on  foot  from 
station  to  station  or  travel  in  a  small  canoe  on  the  stomiv 
Lake  Michigan,  a  thing  often  dangerous.  Such  canoe  voy- 
ages would  be  still  more  dangerous  were  not  the  Indians 
so  skillful  in  the  management  of  their  canoes.  On  such 
journeys  a  person  must  sometimes  pass  the  night  on  the 
shore  of  the  lake,  and  the  nights  this  spring  were  very  cold. 

"This  spring  I  departed  at  the  earliest  opportunity  I 
could  find  for  Mackinac  and  St.  Ignace,  in  order  to  begin 
my  visitation.  This  opportunity,  however,  dicl  not  present 
itself  before  the  15th  of  May,  because  the  ice  re.iained  in 


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304 


BT.   REV.    FREDBBIO   BARAGA. 


our  St.  Mary's  river  very  late.  When  I  an'ived  at  those 
two  mission  stations,  the  iK>ople  there,  who  depend  prin- 
cipally upon  fishing  for  their  living,  were  already  gone  to 
their  spring  fishing.  These  poor  people  are  employed  by 
the  whites  to  fish  for  them.  Their  employers  furnish  tliem 
with  empty  fish-kegs,  nets,  and  salt  and  pay  them  from 
four  to  five  dollars  for  evei*y  keg  of  fish  they  fill  and  salt 
down.  Among  these  fishermen  ai*e  many  adults,  who  have 
not  yet  been  confirmed,  IxH^ause  they  are  never  at  hand 
when  tlio  bishop  comes.  The  missionaries,  therefore,  told 
me  that  I  should  come  in  winter  in  order  to  find  them  at 
home,  llenco  I  will  be  obliged  to  make  a  journey  on  fo<>t 
with  snow-shoos  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  Mackinac  and 
St  Ignace  in  the  first  days  of  February,  1860. 

"These  winter  journeys  I  find  somewhat  difficult  now, 
for  in  tlie  fii'st  place  I  am  become  unaecust<)med  to  them, 
and  si>condly  on  account  of  my  age,  for  by  next  February, 
if  I  live,  I  shall  be  in  my  sixty-third  year.  At  that  age, 
especially  if  a  pei*son  has  in  former  years  suffered  hard- 
ship"^, he  is  already  a  little  stiff  and  feels  the  cold.  Walk- 
ing during  the  day  goes  tolerably  well,  but  when  one  is 
obliged  to  camp  out  in  the  open  air  at  night  in  the  woods 
in  this  northern  climate  it  is  unpleasant.  By  reason  of 
the  tiret"'^nie  walking  on  snow-shoes  over  hills  and  through 
valleys  a  person  is  sweating  all  day,  notwithstanding  the 
eold,  30  that  one's  underclothes  become  w^et.  Then  when 
he  stands  still  in  the  evening,  he  soon  feels  terribly  cold 
and  begins  to  tremble  as  if  he  had  the  fever.  If  I  could 
iirrive  at  some  house  eveiy  evening  on  these  winter  jour- 
neys, traveling  would  not  be  so  hard,  but  in  this  desolate 
•country  a  man  has  often  to  walk  several  days  before  seeing 
a  single  house.  Such  is  the  lot  of  a  missionary  bishop,  al- 
though I  do  not  find  it  so  hard  because  I  have  been  a  mis- 
sionary in  this  \\dld  country  for  so  many  years.  The  only 
thing  that  weighs  on  me  is  my  advanced  age. 

''From  the  mission  St.  Ignace  I  went  in  a  birch-crnoe 


•iBfc.iy  jj    ,,Li.i  J. 


INTERESTINQ   REMINISCENCES. 


305 


to  tho  Indian  village,  Cross  Village,  where  a  noble  German 
missionary  of  the  Third  Order  of  St.  Francis,  Rev. 
Seraphin  Zom,  labors  zealously  among  the  Indians  for  the 
honor  of  God  and  their  salvation.  He  has  learned  the  In- 
diaii  language  in  a  comparatively  short  time.  This  is  an 
exclusively  Indian  mission.  Mackinac  and  St.  Ignace  are 
mixe<i  mis&io-ns.  In  these  two  places  there  are  Indians, 
half-breeils,  Canadian-French,  and  Irish,  but  in  Cross- 
Village  all  are  Indians. 

"As  soon  as  they  saw  tho  canoe  coming  from  afar,  they 
rang  the  church  bell  and  all  assembled.  The  schoolmaster, 
who  is  a  Brother  of  the  Third  Order,  came  at  the  head  of 
his  school  children,  who  carried  two  banners,  the  Indians 
following  behind.  They  came  down  to  the  beach  to  receive 
their  bishop.  Then  they  all  knelt  down  to  receive  the  epis- 
copal blessing,  whereupon  they  accompanied  me  amidst  the 
firing  of  guns  and  ringing  of  bells  to  the  mission  church, 
where,  after  a  short  address,  I  again  gave  them  my  bless- 
ing. That  is  in  general  the  way  the  Indians  everywhere 
receive  their  bishop.  I  always  have  much  consolation  in 
this  mission,  for  the  poor  Indians  there  are  good  and  very 
assiduous  in  attending  church  and  their  missionary  is  ex- 
emplary and  zealous. 

"From  there  I  sailed  to  the  Beaver  Islands,  which  are 
situated  in  the  middle  of  Lake  Michigan,  between  Upper 
and  Lower  Michigan.  Tw^o  of  these  islands  are  inhabited, 
one  by  Indians,  the  other  by  whites,  who  are  for  the  most 
part  Irish.  When  I  first  came  to  these  missions  only  In- 
dians lived  on  the  islands,  but  some  years  ago  the  whites 
began  to  settle  on  large  Beaver  Island,  and  the  vei*y  worst 
kind  of  w^hites,  namely,  the  Turkishly  inclined  Mormons 
with  their  countless  wives.  In  a  short  time  there  were  over 
three  liimdred  families  of  these  horrible  people  there,  and 
they  carried  on  things  in  such  a  high-handed  manner  all 
over  the  beautiful  island  that  no  others  could  settle  there. 
Besides  their  Mohammedan  polygamy,  they  were  a  kind 


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306 


IIT.  BEV.  FREDEBIC  BARAGA. 


of  })iratos  aiul  tliievos.  Thoy  coniinittod  ao  many  bad  deeds 
that  tlK>  iioighlKH'iiip,'  tovviiH,  cftpocially  the  inhabitants  of 
]\Iackina(*,  nniteil,  hired  a  larg-e  steamboat,  and  with  arms 
in  tlieir  liands  drove  the  thievish  Mormons  from  Beaver 
]sland. 

"Now  tliis  larp,'e  and  beantifnl  island  is  inhabited. al- 
most entirelv  by  Catholies,  mostlv  Irish  and  some  Germans 
juid  Freneh.  They  earnestly  long  to  have  a  ehurch  and 
priest  in  tlieir  midst.  On  the  22d  of  May,  the  foui*tli  Sun- 
day aftor  Easter,  I  said  holy  !Mass  there  in  a  large,  spacious 
sehmd  house,  and  preached  in  English  for  the  lii*st  time 
on  tJiis  island,  and  after  Mass  confirmed  twenty-four  per- 
sons. They  were  al  adults,  with  the  exception  of  one  boy ; 
some  of  them  were  old  men  and  women  who  had  never  be- 
fore had  an  o}>portunity  to  see  a  bishop  in  their  neighbor- 
IiwkI.  After  divine  sen^ice  the  women  and  children  went 
out  and  I  held  a  meeting  with  the  men  to  deliberate  where 
and  how  a  church  might  l)e  built  on  this  island. 

"Then  I  sailed  over  to  the  smaller  Beaver  Island,  called 
Garden  Island,  which  is  inhabited  by  Indians,  who  are 
visit<^d  from  time  to  time  by  Bev.  Father  Zorn.  All  these 
Indians  are  now  Catholics  and  hold  fast  to  the  faith,  not- 
w^ithstanding  the  bad  examples  around  them  when  the  Mor- 
mons were  living  in  their  neighborhood.  Thus  far  they 
had  their  old  chapel,  built  of  bark,  but  they  are  now  on  the 
point  of  building  a  decent  church.  It  will  be  constmcted 
from  the  most  Ix^autiful  cedar  I  have  ever  seen,  which  is 
already  hewn  and  ready  to  be  used.  Such  a  building  made 
of  cellar  can  last  more  than  a  century,  provided  the  roof  be 
repaired  from  time  to  time. 

''Accompanied  by  the  zealous  missionary,  Bev.  Zorn, 
I  visited  two  other  mission  stations,  and  on  the  8d  of  June 
I  arrived  at  Little  Traverse,  the  former  Arbre  Croche. 
This  was  my  first  mission  amongst  the  Indians,  which  I 
opened  on  the  28th  of  ^lay,  18J31.  Here  the  Indians  have 
a  beautiful,  spacious  church,  which  they  have  built  them- 


^^■M^^W. 


INTERESTING   REMINISCENCES. 


307 


selves.  In  fact,  tlicsc  Indians  are  already  ])retty  well  ad- 
vanced in  civilization.  They  are  almost  all  carpenters  aiid 
make  their  own  boats.  When  1  tirst  came  here  the  Indians 
had  but  birch-bark  cancx^s.  Now  we  do  not  see  them  any 
more. 

"At  this  visitation  a  thing  occurred  to  me  that  had  not 
yet  happened  in  our  Indian  missions.     A  young  Indian 
maiden  of  about  18  or  10  years,  who,  according  to  the  tes- 
timony of  the  missionary,  has  led  for  years  a  pious  life  and 
gone  often  to  holy  Communion,  came  to  me  and  entreated 
mo  earnestly  to  receive  her  in  the  Ursuline  Convent  at 
Sault  Ste.  jVlarie.     I  wondered  at  such  a  reipiest  from  an 
Indian,  because  this  nation  only  wishes  for  and  respects 
tho  matrimonial  state  as  the  Hebrews  and  other  nations  of 
ancient  times.     In  order  to  act  with  certainty  I  sent  for 
her  parents  and  questioned  them  in  regard  to  their  daugh- 
ter.   They  stated  that  several  young  men  had  asked  her  to 
marry,  but  that  she  had  not  aceepteil  any  such  proposal 
and  that  she  intended  to  live  single  all  her  life.     I  asked 
her  then  repeatedly  whether  she  really  wanted  to  leave  all 
and  enter  a  convent,  and  she  declared  that  such  was  her 
sole  wish.     So  I  took  her  along  and  she  was  received  as  a 
novice  in  our  Ursuline  Convent.     I  wonder  whether  she 
will  pei*severe." 

From  Baraga's  journal  we  learn  that  the  name  of  this 
pious  young  Indian  maiden  was  Margaret  Sagima.  The 
bishop  brought  her  to  the  Ursulines  at  the  "Sault"  on  the 
17th  of  June,  1851).  In  a  few  days  she  grew  homesick, 
and  already  on  the  26th  of  that  same  month  he  was  obliged 
to  send  her  home  on  the  "Lady  Elgin."  In  this  connection 
he  makes  the  following  reflection  in  his  journal : 

"N.  B. — One  should  never  try  to  form  a  priest  of  an 
Indian  man,  or  a  Sister  from  an  Indian  woman." 

The  wn'iter  fully  concurs  with  B.  Baraga's  views  in 
this  matter.  The  Indian,  although  ever  so  pious  and  well- 
meaning,  is  naturally  too  fickle-minded,  too  destitute  of 


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308 


BT.  ItEV.   PREDERtO  BAIlAaA. 


spirituality  (we  mean,  naturally  too  gross,  too  sensual), 
and  too  much  attached  to  his  kindred  to  bo  ever  fit  for  so 
sublime  a  calling  as  the  sacerdotal  or  religious  state.  That 
we  honestly  believe  to  be  the  rule;  there  may  be  exceptions, 
of  course.* 

The  bishop  continues:  "^t  Little  Traverse  Rev.  Louis 
RifFerath  is  stationed  as  missionarv.  lie  is  a  conscientious, 
zealous,  and  pious  Gennan  pr'es;  who  in  a  short  time  has 
lermcd  the  Indian  lar.  '"■'ag;'^  ■  ]»^r  i.bly  veil  an!  daily  per- 
fects himself  in  it.  Ait  \:'  1  hr.A  visited  two  small  Indian 
niission  stations  with  Re-.  ^niL-rcth  and  preached  every- 
w^hcre  to  the  Indians,  I  arrive  ci  ov  the  9th  of  June,  at 
Grand  Traverse.  This  is  the  mission  of  Rev.  Father  Mrak, 
ivho  has  worked  for  many  years  as  a  zealous  and  enlight- 
ened missionary  among  the  Indians.  I  was  very  agreeably 
surprised  there  when  I  saw  how  beautifully  Father  Mrak 
had  repaired  and  beautified  his  church,  both  interiorly  and 
extoriorly. 

'^On  our  return  from  Grand  Traverse  we  ^vere  obliged 
to  go  ashore  at  night,  which  was  stormy  and  cold.  We 
spent  the  night  sleeping  on  the  beach.  I  had  no  blanket 
with  me,  but,  fortunately,  had  my  cloak.  I  lay  down  on 
the  cold  sand  and  p^issed  the  night  shivering  with  cold. 
Next  morning  I  could  scarcely  speak  and  could  hardly 
stand  up;  I  had  caught  a  bad  cold. 

*'0n  the  17th  of  June  I  again  arrived  at  Sault  Ste. 
Marie,  to  my  great  j  y  and  that  of  others.  I  shall  remain 
here  a  couple  of  weeks  and  then  undertake  a  new  mission- 
ary journey  to  Lake  Superior,  which  will  last  two  months." 


*riie  writer  lias  fortunately  learned  of  the  actual  existence  of  an 
Indian  priest  named  Rev.  M,  T.  Vincent,  a  i/wron ,  of  Lorrette,  near 
Quebec,  who  said  the  Requiem  mass  at  the  funeral  of  his  Cliief,  Maurice 
Sebastian  Ahj^niolen,  on  the  30th  of  December,  1896.  Ahgniolen  had 
been  grandchief  of  his  peo])le  at  Lorrette  and  a  man  highly  esteemed  by 
all,  hence  some  of  the  most  notable  men  of  the  Canadian  government 
honored  his  funeral  by  their  presence. 


VISITS   WESTERN    MISSIONS. 


309 


?> 


As  he  had  imcndocl,  B.  Baraga  started  from  the  "Saiilt" 
on  the  29th  of  June,  1859,  his  sixty-se«)nd  birthday,  to 
visit  his  we?tem  missions.  He  arrived  at  L'Anse  on  the 
2d  of  July  and  v^'as  much  consoled  at  the  flourishing  con- 
dition of  that  Indian  i.iission,  always  so  dear  tx)  his  heart. 
It  had  grown  to  such  an  extent  that  the  cliurch  was  too 
small  to  hold  all  the  people  on  Sundays.  He  was  still  more 
con^olexi  when  he  was  assured  by  some  pagans  from  Lac 
Vieux  Desert  (Gete-Kitigan)  that  they  themselves  and 
many  of  their  relatives  and  acquaintances  would  come  next 
summ.er  to  L'Anse  and  embrace  the  Catholic  roli|x\on.  The 
good  bishop  in  the  joy  of  his  heart  promises  o  me  next 
year  at  an  earlier  date.  He  said  he  would  ay  •  th  them 
longer  to  instruct  the  pagans,  and  would  er!  ny;-  -he  church 
by  one-half.  He  therefore  respectfullv  p  itioned  the 
Leopoldino  Society  to  a&sist  him,  as  he  <  Ad  expect  little 
pecuniary  help  from  the  Indians. 

He  next  visited  Eagle  Harbor  and  Clark's  Mine.  This 
mine  was  worked  by  a  syndicate  of  French  capitalists  of 
Paris,  and  all  the  miners  in  their  employ  were  Catholics. 
This  mission  was  attended  by  Rev.  Thieie,  of  Eagle  Har- 
bor. The  people  were  partly  French-Canadians  and  partly 
Irish.  Bishop  Baraga  asked  the  directors  of  this  mine  to 
let  him  build  a  small  church  there  for  the  miners  that  the 
priest  might  no  longer  be  under  the  necessity  of  saying 
Mass  in  a  private  house. 

Having  spent  the  Sunday  at  Eagle  Harbor  with  Kev. 
Thieie,  preaching  and  hearing  confessions,  he  went  with 
him  to  the  celebrated  Cliff  Mine,  out  of  which  millions  of 
dollars'  worth  oi  copper  had  been  taken,  and  which  yielded 
from  150  to  180  tons  of  the  most  beautiful  pure  copper 
monthly.  In  1859  a  large  and  beautiful  church  was  built 
and  completed.  It  w^as  called  St.  Mary's  church.  A  house 
was  likewise  built  for  the  priest,  whom  they  hoped  soon  to 
get.  Thus  far  it  had  been  attended  every  third  Sunday 
from  Eagle  Harbor.    B.  Baraga  contributed  three  hundred 


m 

m 

m 


um 


«\»! 


310 


RT.    REV.    FREDEirO   BARAGA. 


ill 


^'  w 


■v4 


'm 


''tis      "•  ■'mi 


11^', 


(lolljirs  iind  a  boll  tliat  coat  him  one  hundred  and  sixtoon 
dollai*!^  to  this  chnrcli.  The  directors  of  this  mine,  although 
not  Catliolics,  contrihiited  one  hundred  dollars.  B.  Baraga 
was  highly  phnised  with  the  people  of  that  mission  on  ac- 
count of  their  i)iety  and  great  assiduity  in  attending  divine 
service  and  receiving  the  holy  sacraments.  Every  time  the 
priest  came  he  had  large  crowds  of  penitents  for  confes- 
sion, and  all  that  couh'  do  so  attendcxl  Mass. 

B.  Baraga  next  "  xsited  Marquette,  near  which,  he  says, 
are  rich  and  inex'  austible  iron  mines  of  a  superior  quality. 
These  mines  ^e  l(x*ated  about  fifteen  miles  from  Mar- 
quette. .^  <•! lurch  w^as  being  built  at  the  mine,  while  at 
*4Jttle  ".larquette,"  as  he  calls  the  city,  there  was  a  small 
church  ,n  1851),  attended  bv  Father  Duroc. 

Froi  \  Marquette  Baraga  went  on  the  ''North  Star"  to 
La  Poin  e,  where  he  arrived  on  the  23d  of  August.  He 
preached  th.ere  on  Sunday  in  Chippewa,  English  and 
French,  and  confinued  seventeen  persons. 

B.  Bara/"a  also  visited  Portage  Lake  (Houghton)  ou 
the  2J)th  of  Ju^y.  w^here  tliere  were  five  productive  copper 
mines  in  close  pro.imity.  A  church  had  been  built  there 
in  the  f  )re  part  of  l<^')0,  which  B.  Baraga  blessed  on  the 
31st  of  July,  naming  it  after  St.  Ignatius,  founder  of  the 
grand  Jesuit  Order,  whose  feast  occurs  on  that  day,  and 
"w^hoso  spiritual  sons,"'  says  he,  "were  and  still  are  the 
greatest  missionaries."  He  dedicated  it  with  extraor- 
dinary solemnity,  singing  Pontifical  High  IMass,  assisted 
by  Revs.  Thiele,  Jacker,  and  O'l^eil.  In  his  fervor  he 
preached  on  this  solemn  occasion  in  English,  German  and 
French.  He  left  Rev.  O'jS'eil  there  as  the  first  resident 
priest. 

After  visiting  several  smaller  missions,  B.  Baraga  went 
to  Minnesota  Mine,  ''where  the  distinguished  missionary, 
Rev.  Martin  Fox,  lal)ors  with  holy  and  untiring  zeal.  Be- 
sides his  large  congregation  at  Minnesota,  which  consists 
of  libli,  German,  and  French,  he  has  three  other  congre- 


St    :  \'    -t'v 


I      "tJUPlfflfll^Wib 


"DEO  GBATIAS   INFINITA8." 


311 


gations  to  attond,  which  ho  visits  from  time  to  time.  Be- 
sides a  jijroat  holy  zoal,  God  has  ^'wcn  him  a  stronj^  and 
enduring  bodily  constitution,  which  triumphs  victoriously 
over  hardships  that  would  exhaust  two  ordinary  priests. 
May  the  good  God  yet  keep  him  long  and  reward  liis  untir- 


ing labors." 


On  the  4tli  of  Se[)teud>er  he  blesscnl  Father  Fox's 
church — "the  largest  and  most  iKMiutifui  in  the  diocese" — 
in.  honor  of  the  holv  Name  of  Mary.     On  this  occa.sion 

I'  I-' 

*'the  beautiful  organ,  which  F.  Fox  had  ordered  from  Buf- 
falo, was  heard  for  the  first  time.  This  is  the  first  real 
organ  throughout  my  poor  diocese ;  for  here  in  my  cathe- 
dral, as  well  as  in  otlier  churches,  we  have  but  organ-like 
instiimients,  called  melodeons." 

Under  date  of  the  21sr  of  ^^eptemlx^r,  1850.  we  find  the 
following  entry  in  his  journal : 

''The  thirtv-sixth  anniversary  of  mv  ordination.  Deo 
gratias!  The  eighteenth  anniversary  of  my  meditating 
morning  prayer.     Deo  gratias  infinitas  !" 

The  above  entry  as  to  his  meditative  morning  prayer 
shows  that  he  had  already  begim  that  holy  practice  of  medi- 
tating at  least  one,  oftener  two,  horirs,  when  stationed  at 
La  Pointe,  B.  Baraga  did  what  the  Apostles  said :  "Nos 
antem  orationi  et  verbo  Dei  instantes  erimus" — "But  we 
will  give  ourselves  continually  to  prayer  and  to  the  minis- 
try of  the  word." 

On  the  1 3th  of  October  he  writes : 

''Rev.  John  Cebul  (Chebul),  who  is  intended  for  Min- 
nesota Mine,  arrived  today,  on  his  twenty-seventh  birth- 
day. He  left  for  his  destination  on  the  "Mineral  Rock" 
the  next  day." 

Last  spring  Father  Chebul  related  an  anecdote  con- 
nected with  his  aiTival  in  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  which  illus- 
trates the  simple  kind-heartedness  and  humility  of  Bishop 
Baraga.    He  went  along  with  young  Father  Chebul  to  the 


W>'  > 


■!    -■ 


■  ■ 


m 


i., 

11' 


t*i 


:<  ■!:' 


^^iiiil 


•1  'si; 

3  ,?:! 


:  .:  U 


312 


RT.    RBV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


9tcaml)oat,  on  which  tho  latter  was  to  depart,  llo  had  two 
satchels.  B.  Barji^^a  Unik  hoth  of  them  to  carry.  Cliobul 
remonstrated  with  him  and  trie<l  with  kindly  violence  to 
get  them  out  oi  his  hiuids.  "liishop,"  says  he,  ''it  does  not 
look  well  for  you,  a  bishoj),  to  carry  my  satchels."  "Never 
mind,-'  says  the  bishoj),  "yon  must  spare  yourself;  I  am 
old  and  used  to  these  things.  I  am  bishop;  you  must 
obey." 

He  tells  of  another  incident  in  the  life  of  B.  Baraga, 
showing  his  humility  and  mortification.  When  Father 
Chebul  had  charge  of  J^a  Pointe  it  happened,  that  the 
bishop  stopped  with  him  over  night  in  a  room  in  tho  rear 
of  the  church.  There  was  but  one  bed  in  the  room.  Father 
Chebul  wanted  his  bishop  to  sleep  in  the  bed,  whilst  he 
would  help  himself  some  other  way  for  that  night.  .  But 
the  bishop  would  on  no  account  sleep  in  the  bed,  saying, 
"No!  You  must  spare  yourself;  you  must  mind;  I  am 
the  bishop."  And  so  the  good  bishop  lay  down  on  the  bare, 
nncarpeted  floor  with  only  a  mat  under  his  body  and  a 
cloak  for  a  covering.     He  would  not  even  accept  a  pillow. 

On  another  occasion  Bishop  Baraga  and  Father  Chebul 
were  to  go  on  some  business  to  the  Indian  village  Odaiiah, 
in  the  Bad  River  Reservation,  a  short  distance  from  Ash- 
land. "Bishop,"  says  Chebul,  "let  me  take  Mr.  Remillard 
along  to  help  row  tlie  boat."  (Theophile  Remillard  is  to^ 
day  an  octogenarian  still  living  at  La  Pointe,  v,here  he  has 
now  resided  for  almost  sixty  years.)  "No!"  says  the 
bishop ;  "Remillard  is  a  poor  man  and  must  work  to  sup- 
port his  family."  So  they  started  with  only  a  young  man 
to  row  the  boat,  namely,  Charles  Haskins,  who  now  resides 
at  Ashland.  The  wind  was  against  them  and  young  Has- 
kins made  but  slow  headway  against  the  waves,  so  that 
Father  Chebul  was  obliged  to  take  a  pair  of  oars  to  help 
him.  "Don't  do  that,  Father  Chebul,"  says  the  bishop. 
"Wlel,"  says  Chebul,  "if  I  don't  row,  the  wind  will  drive 
us  back  to  La  Pointe."     Finally  the  bishop  acquiesced. 


.'^'y\i^)'^^^ii'iiSTi;tin,r!^r:^yi-,.  h  ■  ;-L*.;^;*Pli 


DIFFICULT  TRAVELINQ. 


3ia 


\ive 


"Father  Chobul,"  says  he,  "forgive  me  for  not  having  fol- 
lowed your  advice/'  After  they  got  to  Che(]\iiunegon  Point 
— Shagawamikong  in  Indian — they  could  pr<K'(HHl  no- 
farther,  when  all  of  a  sudden  F.  Chebul  thcnight  of  a  rope 
ho  had  stowed  away  in  the  prow  of  tlie  boat.  He  then  told 
Hawkins  to  land,  and  tying  one  end  of  the  rope  to  tlio  l)oat, 
the  young  iruin  was  made  to  take  the  other  end  and  draw 
the  boat  along  walking  on  the  beaeh,  while  F.  Chebul  him- 
self acU^d  as  pilot;  tind  so  they  proceeded  to  Odanah  via 
Bad  River,  instead  of  going  by  way  of  the  Kakagan,  which 
would  have  been  considerably  nearer. 

Father  Chebul  also  tells  this  incident  showing  the 
judgment  of  God  against  the  enemies  of  B.  Baraga:  A 
certain  priest,  w4iom  charity  forbids  us  to  name,  was  giv- 
ing great  scandal  through  drinking,  and  ^  's  parishioners 
petitioned  B.  Baraga  to  remove  him.  The  latter  came  to 
investigate  the  matter  and  suspended  the  unhappy  priest. 
The  priest  had  a  few  men  of  the  parish  on  his  side  who 
took  his  part  against  the  bishop.  One  of  them  came  to 
intercede  for  the  unhappy  priest  and  spoke  very  disre- 
spectfully to  B.  Baraga.  In  his  excitement  the  man  raised 
.  his  hand  in  a  tlireatening  manner  as  if  intending  to  strike 
the  bishop.    The  same  day  the  unhappy  man  lost  his  ann. 

Even  Protestants  and  men  of  no  religion  had  gre'^t  re- 
spect for  Baraga.  A  certain  man  used  to  keep  a  stopping 
place  and  often  secretly  sold  whisky  to  the  Indians. 
Baraga,  who  often  stopped  at  this  house  on  his  travels, 
would  gently  reprove  him  for  his  conduct,  when  he  gener- 
ally made  sol  e  lame  excuse,  saying  he  only  gave  it  to  the 
Indians  w^hen  sick,  to  cut  the  camphor,  and  so  forth. 
Finally,  howevei ,  he  tired  of  the  unpleasant,  though  gentle 
rebukes,  of  B.  Baraga  and  meditated  revenge.  He  knov" 
that  the  bishop  was  fond  of  cake,  and  so  he  told  his  wife, 
who  was  a  Catholic,  but  a  very  poor  one,  to  make  Irqaor- 
cake,  which  she  did.  Baraga  ate  of  it  in  his  simple,  cliild- 
liko  way,  suiTnising  no  hann.    Then  he  said  to  B.  Baraga, 


I! 


314 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


it! 


ll! 


,.   i't'  • 


I 


U  i>  mm. :  ■ 


;i.    .,  ,.:■■  i; 


I 


^   I 


til 

I 

1 


"You  always  reprimand  me  for  giving  liquor  to  the  In- 
dians, and  you  have  yourself  taken  a  pint  of  brandy  in 
that  cake."  Baraga  mildly  answered,  "I  am  sorry  for  you. 
I  always  took  you  for  a  gentleman — I  am  sorry."  This 
mild  rejoinder,  this  simple  appeal  to  his  better  nature, 
pierced  him  as  if  a  dagger  had  been  thrust  tliro^  h  his 
heart.  He  at  once  realized  the  meanness  of  the  petty  trick 
and  fell  on  his  knees,  Protestant  though  he  was,  before 
Baraga  and  hund)ly  ai^ke(1  his  pardon.  He  afterwards  per- 
ished on  the  "Sunbeam,"  which  foundered  in  Lake  Supe- 
rior with  all  on  board  except  one  Canadian-Frenchman 
named  Frajeau,  who  resided  at  Superior  for  many  years 
and  died  ther^^ 

Although  a  little  out  of  the  chronological  order,  the 
writer  wishes  to  relate  another  anecdote  showing  the  high 
esteeia  in  which  B.  Baraga  was  held  by  all  classes.  They 
looked  upon  him  as  the  beau-ideal  of  a  Christian  gentle- 
man. When  B.  Baraga  visited  Bayfield  and  La  Pointe 
for  the  last  time  he  was  verv  feeble,  and  his  hands  would 
tremble,  being  partly  paralyzed.  Father  Chebul  accom- 
panied him  on  the  boat  on  the  return  voyage  to  Marquette. 
McK.  was  captain  of  the  boat.  At  dinner  B.  Baraga  tried 
to  eat  a  little  soup,  but  his  hand  trembled  so  much  that  he 
spilt  most  of  the  aoup  before  the  spoon  reached  his  mouth. 
Captain  JMcK.  saw  this.  "Father  Chebul,"  says  he,  "take 
my  place  at  the  head  of  the  table !"  Reluctantly  F.  Chebul 
obe^'cd,  not  knowing  what  the  captain  meant  to  do.  Pres- 
ently the  captain  went  down  to  B.  Baraga  and,  seating 
himself  at  his  side,  he  fed  the  bishop  with  the  spoon,  hold- 
ing the  bishop's  head  with  his  other  hand.  This  sight 
moved  the  passengers,  especially  the  ladies,  to  tears,  as 
the  captain  was  otherwise  a  "rough-spoken  man."  They 
followed  him  out  after  dinner  and  thanked  him  in  the 
name  of  humanity  and  Christianity  for  his  kind  act  to 
Bishop  Baraga. 


l^-*****"^ 


m 


ClIAPTErt  LI. 


DOINC.S   AXD   irAPPENIN'OS   OF   B.    BARAGA   DURIXr}   THK    YEA  ? 

1860, GREAT     MISER1V:S     ON     UIS     WINTER     TRII»     TO 

MACKINAC   AND  ST.    IGNACE. UE   VISITS   SUI'ERIOR,   LA 

POINTE    AND    BAD    RIVER    RESERVATION. INTERESTIN(} 

ENTRIES  FROM  UIS  JOURNAL. 


I:  PI 


[«■*- 


Lting 
lold- 
[ight 
as 
'hev 
the 
It  to 


When  B.  Baraga  visited  Maekinac  and  St.  Ignaoe,  in 
the  si)ring  of  1851),  the  fishennen,  mostly  Frencli-Cana- 
dians  and  half-breeds,  were  already  gone  to  their  fishing 
grounds,  some  seventy  to  eighty  miles  distant.  He  was 
told  that  he  could  find  them  at  home  only  during  winter. 
So  he  promised  the  Fathers  in  charge  of  those  missions  to 
come  again  during  the  following  winter.  This  winter  jour- 
ney from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  Mackinac  generally  took  two 
and  a  half  days  going  and  the  same  length  of  time  return- 
ing, and  made  it  necessary'  to  sleep  out  in  the  open  air  four 
nights. 

Trus*^ing  in  God's  help,  the  Bishop  set  out  on  his  jour- 
ney on  the  6th  of  Februaiy,  1860.  lie  was  accompanied 
by  two  men,  who  carried  the  necessarv'  provisions  and  the 
blankets  to  sleep  on  at  night.  The  weather  was  very  cold. 
The  bishop  got  a  ride  of  three  miles  on  a  carriole,  and  then 
having  put  on  his  snow-shoes  he  traveled  quite  a  distance. 
It  would  have  moved  any  compassionate  soul  to  tears  to 
see  this  feeble  old  man,  with  heavy  snow-shoes  on  his  feet, 
drag  himself  along  slowly  following  his  half-breed  guides, 
who  walked  ahead  to  pack  down  the  snow  a  little,  Now 
and  then,  at  short  intervals,  the  good  men  would  stand  still 
and  look  back  to  see  v/hether  their  Father  was  following 
them.    The  poor  bishop  perspired  freely,  notwithstanding 


m 


r  I 


316 


BT.    REV.    FKEDEKIC   BARAGA. 


*      I 


lit 


li 


ti 


(> 
f 

ft 

h 


Vi  ! 


;'.    ,1,  :"■■ 


11 


.   ■■    :       f'" 


,|| 


;;fiiifci 


the  great  cold.  They  kept  walking  on  through  the  virginal 
forest  until  noon,  the  walking  being  very  fatiguing  to  the 
goo<l  bishop.  At  noon  they  kindled  a  fire  and  cooked  tea, 
and  this  tea  and  a  piece  of  bread  was  their  dinner.  After 
dinner  they  resumed  their  journey  and  by  evening  reached 
the  wig^vam  of  an  Indian  chief,  they  having  traveled 
twenty  miles  that  day.  E.  Baraga  "passed  the  night  pass- 
ablv  well,  thanks  to  his  double  blanket  and  the  care  of  his 
guides."  The  wigvvani  was  an  old,  abandoned  one,  which 
was  totally  open  on  top  and  had  no  door.  The  reader  may 
imagine  what  a  comfortable  night  Baraga  spent  in  such  a 
place  alter  his  hard  day's  travel. 

The  next  morning  he  arose  at  four  o'clock  to  say  a  part 
of  his  office  before  daybreak.  On  those  winter  journeys 
the  breviai"y  could  be  said  only  early  in  the  morning  and 
in  the  evening  before  going  to  sleep. 

The  next  morning  his  traveling  companions  prepared 
a  fnigal  breakfast,  consisting  of  bread  and  tea,  and  such 
were  all  his  meals  on  this  journey.  11*3  traveled  all  day 
again  on  snow-shoes,  doing  tolerably  well,  but  towards 
evening  he  felt  greatly  fatigued,  so  much  so  that  he  could 
scarcely  stand  on  his  feet. 

They  halted  and  made  preparations  for  camping.  The 
^piides  shoveled  the  snow  away  a  little  with  their  snow- 
shoes,  then  brought  spruce  boughs  and  spread  them  on  the 
snow,  and  that  was  the  bishop's  bed  for  the  night.  Then 
they  chopped  some  wood  and  made  a  large  fire,  for  it  was 
very  cold  under  the  open  sky,  especially  as  his  underclothes 
were  all  wet  from  perspiration  after  his  tiresome  walk. 
Having  said  his  office  and  taken  his  tea,  Baraga  lay  down 
in  the  name  of  God  on  his  cold  bed  and  slept  a  little  from 
time  to  time,  with  no  roof  over-head  but  the  starry  canopy 
©f  heaven. 

Finally,  the  third  day  cf  his  journey  da^vned.  He  was 
in  hopes  of  reaching  the  mission  of  St.  Tgnace  by  noon, 
for  he  felt  very  tired.     He  remarks:     "How  old  age  has 


EXPERIENCES   HARDSHIPS. 


317 


?  virginal 
ng  to  the 
oked  tea, 
r.  After 
5  reached 
traveled 
ght  pass- 
.re  of  his 
le,  which 
ider  may 
n  such  a 

ly  a  part 
jounieys 
ling  and 

prepared 

md  such 

all  day 

towards 

fie  could 

[g.  The 
r  snow- 
on  the 
Then 
it  was 
•clothes 
walk, 
down 
le  from 
lanopy 

[e  was 

noon, 

ire  has 


:affected  me!  Formerly,  when  I  was  as  yet  a  missionary 
at  Lake  Superior,  I  could  travel  continuously  for  wet^ks 
without  fwling  fatigued.  Now  a  journey  of  two  or  three 
davs  tires  me  out." 

I' 

Earlv  in  the  morning,  as  soon  as  thev  could  see  suffi- 
•ciertly  to  walk,  they  started,  and  by  half-past  ten  they 
emerged  out  of  the  forest,  in  which  they  had  been  travel- 
ing since  they  left  the  Sault,  and  arrive<l  at  Lake  Huron, 
which  was  entirely  covered  with  ice.  From  this  point  they 
could  see  the  country  about  the  mission  of  St.  Ignace,  from 
which  thev  were  still  fifteen  miles  awav. 

Thev  had  walked  but  a  short  distance  on  the  ice  when 
:a  most  welcome  sight  greeted  their  eyes.  Over  twenty 
tastefully  decorated  sleighs  came  from  Point  St.  Ignace 
and  Mackinac  traveling  with  great  speed  to  uvcet  the  bishop. 
The  good  people  had  learned  the  time  of  his  intended  ar- 
rival and  so  they  set  out  in  season  to  meet  their  beloved 
bishop  and  escort  him  in  trivimph  to  St.  Ignace. 

When  they  drove  up  they  alighted  from  their  sleighs, 
and,  kneeling  down  on  the  ice,  implored  the  episcopal  ber;"- 
diction,  which  the  good  bishop  gave  them  with  a  heart  full 
of  emotion.  And  now  followed  mutnial  salutations  and 
acts  of  kindness.  Everyone  wished  him  to  partake  of  the 
refreshments  they  had  brought  along,  which  was  done  by 
the  weary  travelers.  Then  all  got  on  their  sleighs,  and 
swiftly  traveled  over  the  smooth  ace  towards  St.  Ignace, 
where  they  soon  aiTived.  Father  Piret  rang  the  church 
bell,  at  which  the  people  assembled  in  the  church  and  re- 
ceived the  episcopal  blessing. 

B.  Baraga  remained  in  St.  Ignace  eight  days.  All, 
both  priest  and  people,  were  glad  that  the  bishop  had  come, 
for  on  Sunday  he  confirmed  ninety  persons,  whom  he  would 
never  have  found  there  in  summer.  In  large  dioceses  the 
confirming  of  ninety  persons  is  nothing  extraoi  dinary,  but 
at  that  time  and  in  that  sparsely  settled  diocese  such  a 
number  was  considerable.    Amono-  the  confirmed  were  sev- 


i   ;  I 


f;: 
1  'f 


m^ 


318 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


Bi 


'h  m 


Wt 


era]  adults  and  old  people.  The  good  bishop  thanked  God 
for  having  enable<l  him  to  make  that  wint.er  journey  on 
foot  in  order  to  confer  the  holy  Sacrament  of  Confirmation 
on  those  good  i)eoj)]e. 

lie  appointed  the  following  Wednesday,  February  15, 
as  tJie  day  of  his  arrival  in  ^Mackinac,  six  miles  from  Point 
St.  Ignaee.  On  that  day  nineteen  sleighs,  tastefully  deco- 
llated, from  Alackinac  and  St.  Ignaee,  met  and  conveyed 
him  in  triumph  to  Mackinac,  where  the  zealous  pastor, 
liev.  Father  Murrav,  awaited  him  at  the  door  of  the 
church.  The  people  assembled  and  received  the  episcopal 
benediction.  He  remained  in  ^Mackinac  seven  days,  and 
on  Sunday  confirme<l  eighty-two  i>ersons,  whom  he  would 
very  likely  not  liave  found  at  home  during  spring  or  sum- 
mer. On  these  tw^o  Sundays  he  preached  in  English, 
French  and  Indian,  so  that  no  one  might  go  away  without 
hearing  the  word  of  God  in  his  native  tongue. 

On  the  2od  of  February  he  started  on  his  return  home. 
The  good  people  conveyed  him  again  on  tlie  ice  as  far  as 
where  the  trail  entered  the  forest.  On  his  return  trip  he 
had  the  same  hardships  and  miseries  to  undergo  as  he  had 
undergone  before  and  which  we  have  already  described. 
After  two  days  and  tw^o  very  cold  and  unpleasant  nights 
he  reached  home  on  the  25th  of  Febniarv. 

On  the  11th  of  March  we  find  the  following  entry  in 
his  journal : 

"Sunday,  Dom.  Ill  Quadr.  A  well-spent  day,  dies 
plenus,  thanks  be  to  God !  Preached  four  times,  English, 
French,  Indian,  French,  and  I  believe  that  they  were  use- 
ful, practical  sermons.    Deo  gratias !" 

"March  12.  Great  grace!  Three  full  liours!  (he 
means  three  houi*s  of  consoling  conversation  with  God  in 
],:  'nipditjitive  prayei'').  A  beautiful,  sunny  day,  but 
very  k-<-]^\  and  windy — a  rea  IMarch  day — sunny,  cold,  and 
windv '' 

Oi  (hf  ir»;h  oi  Apr'i  we  find  this  expressive  entry- 


r'\ 


IN   DEEP   MEDITATION. 


819 


"Sunday.  Groat  spiritual  misfortune  this  morning  I 
Instead  of  rising  at  3  o'clock,  rose  at  5 — two  little  hours 
absolutely  lost!  Preached  two  sermons  to  empty  pcAvs.  I 
think  the  church  was  never  so  empty  as  today.  The  mail 
expected  for  three  we<^ks  arrived  at  last." 

We  must  bear  in  mind  that  these  entries  were  not  made 
with  a  view  to  publication.  They  are  written  in  three  or 
four  languages.  Often  an  Indian  or  Italian  or  French 
word  or  sentence  will  occur  in  the  same  entrv.  1  liis  shows 
they  were  intended  to  be  strictly  private.  We  publish  occa- 
sionally one  or  another  to  give  our  readers  an  insight  into 
the  inner  life  of  B.  Baraga.  The  above-given  entry  speaks 
volumes.  It  discloses  B.  Baraga  as  a  man  of  interior  life, 
a  man  of  meditation,  even  on  Sundays,  when  there  is  so 
much  work. 

On  May  1st  B.  Baraga  left  Sault  Ste.  ^farie  on  the 
"Lady  Elgin"  to  go  to  Portage  Lake.  On  the  first  day  they 
proceeded  without  hindrance,  but  at  White  Fish  Point  they 
came  upon  immense  fields  of  ice  extending  on  all  sides  as 
far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  They  were  detained  in  this  sea 
of  ice  for  twentv  hours.  At  leiiiith  the  wind  shifted  and 
drove  the  ice  out  into  the  open  lake,  thus  opening  a  channel 
for  the  boat.  Such  immense  fields  of  ice  are  seen  occasion- 
ally on  Lake  Superior  even  late  in  May,  at  times  even  in 
June. 

The  first  mission  Baraga  visited  was  Portage  Lake,  or 
Houghton.  There  was  a  pretty  large  church  at  this  place, 
which,  however,  had  become  too  small  on  account  of  the 
constant  influx  of  miners,  a  large  percentage  of  whom  were 
Catholics.  Father  Jacker  subsequently  became  pastor  of 
Portage  Lake  mission,  and  labored  there  for  many  years. 
The  writer  met  him  for  the  first  time  at  Hancf)ck,  opposite 
Houghton,  in  the  fall  of  1881,  and  with  him  visited  Father 
Terhorst  at  the  mission  of  L'Anse,  in  the  town  of  Baraga. 
The  modern  tow-n  of  L'Anse,  at  the  head  of  Kt  veenaw 
Bav,  is  not  the  site  of  B.  Barai>*a's  ancient  mission.     The 


:\ 


n 


1 


•Bi  1 


I? 


If.' 


'I' 


! 


* 


w 


320 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


5  5,'  ;  -..^^Lt  r 


Jill 


i|4,i: 


t  'i; 


■  •;  'i':|i: 


latter  is  about  two  miles  from  Baraga,  the  county  seat  of 
Baraga  County,  and  the  postoffice  of  the  mission  i&  called 
Assinins,  from  an  old  Indian  chief,  who  used  to  reside  there 
in  Baraga's  time  and  who  was  of  great  assistance  to  him  in 
compiling  his  celebrated  Indian  works. 

As  the  church  at  Houghton  was  altogether  too  small, 
thp  people  resolved  to  build  a  second  church.  This  second 
■church  was  built  at  Hancock. 

B.  Baraga  then  went  to  the  "little  city  of  Superior." 
The  people  were  exceedingly  glad  to  again  see  "a  servant 
of  God,"  for  the  pious  and  zealous  missionary.  Rev.  Van 
Paemel,  who  used  to  attend  this  mission  from  La  Pointe, 
became  so  sick  in  the  fall  of  1859  that  he  was  unable  to  do 
^my  more  missionaiy  work  and  was  obliged  to  return  to  his 
native  country,  Belg.'um,  to  rec  )ver,  if  possible,  from  his 
illness.  The  people  of  Superior,  who  w^ere  very  affection- 
ately attached  to  him,  felt  very  sad  when  they  saw  him 
leave,  the  more  so  as  ihey  were  obliged  to  be  without  a 
priest  during  the  lo'^  f  winter,  for  the  sick  missioiiai*y  de- 
parted on  the  last  steamer.  After  that  there  was  no  more 
-chance  foi  a  priest  to  go  to  La  Pointe  and  Superior  before 
!AIay,  when  navigation  again  ojoened  up.  B.  Baraga  re- 
mained in  SujDcrior  ten  days,  performing  all  the  functions 
of  a  parish  priest.  He  frequently  spent  the  whole  day  in 
the  confessional.  He  also  blessed  their  marriages,  baptized, 
and  instructed  the  children  and  adults. 

Thence  he  went  to  La  Pointe,  where  he  stayed  ten  days 
and  perfonned  all  the  duties  of  a  simple  priest.  He  re^ 
marks :  "I  was  just  in  my  element  there  and  very  much 
satisfied,  for  Indian  missions  are  exactly  my  element. 
I  baptized  sixty-four  persons,  partly  children  and 
partly  adults,  in  Superior  and  La  Pointe.  Only  a  few 
had  died  since  the  departure  of  the  sick  missionary.  Thus 
the  mission  congregations  steadily  increase,  whilst,  on  the 
■other  hand,  the  wild,  unconverted  Indians  are  dying  away 
more  and  more." 


NOTES  FROM  HIS  JOURNAL. 


321 


To  give  an  idea  of  B.  Earajia's  modus  operandi  on 
these  Confirmation  visitations  we  will  give  the  entries,  day 
after  day,  in  his  journal  during  his  stay  at  Sn))erior  and 
La  Pointe.  They  may  prove  intere>ting  to  many  Catho- 
lics at  the  west  end  of  Lake  Superior. 

May  25,  18C0.  Arrived  at  La  Pointe  at  noon,  stopping 
seareelv  fifteen  minutes.  The  same  also  at  Bavfield.  I 
had  no  time  to  view  the  new  church.  I  ])romised  to  return 
t-o  La  Pointe  in  about  twelve  or  fourteen  davs,  and  remain 
there  a  couple  of  weeks.  In  the  evening  arrived  at  sad 
Superior. 

May  2G.  I  was  at  home  all  day  waiting  for  people  who 
came  to  visit  me.  I*so  Confessions  yet;  probably  they  will 
not  come  till  late  at  night.  Very  few  came;  I  hope  they 
will  come  during  the  week  and  next  Sunday. 

May  27.  Pentecost  Sunday.  This  moraing  were  very 
few  confessions,  and  so  but  few  commimions  at  the  first 
Mass,  which  I  said  at  half-past  seven.  At  • !;'  ^^cond  Mass 
there  were  still  less,  and  but  few  people.  J  l'  .30  short  ser- 
mons at  ^lass  and  three  again  after  Vespers. 

May  28.  Today  I  visited  poor  Mrs.  Dame  and  heard 
her  confession.  She  has  a  terrible  cancer  around  her  nose 
and  mouth.  Mr.  Anglois  gave  me  the  ''Kecipe"  for  curing 
cancer. 

May  29.  Last  night  it  stormed  and  rained  fearfully. 
Terrihle  streets  in  Superior!  Fortunately  there  are  side- 
walks almost  everywhere,  otherwise  there  would  be  no  get- 
ting through  in  this  weather.  Brought  holy  Communion 
to  Mrs.  Dame. 

Mav  30.  There  were  nianv  confessions  today  and 
many  communions  in  the  morning,  as  also  many  candidates 
for  Confirmation  to  be  instructed.  In  the  afternoon  I 
heard  the  confession  of  sick  Mrs.  Rvan.  Misera  afflicta 
humanitas ! 

Mav  31.     A  very  beautiful  da  v.     Old  Mav  wants  to 

L.'  1/  1/  1' 

coax  us  a  little  before  he  leaves  us.     Brought  holy  Com- 


m 


322 


RT.    BEV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


! 


i  I 


i»« 


*'i      I 


f; 


mimion  to  Mrs.  Hyan.  Thus  far  I  have  baptized  ten  chil- 
dren, but  perhaps  there  are  yet  more  to  be  baptized.  Bap- 
tized another  tcxlay. 

June  1.  June,  my  birth-month,  begins  nicely;  we  will 
see  how  he  will  l)ehave  hereafter.  Many  confessions.  The 
people  of  Fond  du  Lac  are  beginning  to  come,  some  are 
even  coming  from  the  Indian  If(?servati(tii. 

June  2.  An  extraordinary  day  of  work.  Continual 
confessions  and  instructions  for  P».'iptism  and  (confirma- 
tion, also  for  first  Communion. 

June  3,  iSwiday.  Today  there  were  more  people  in 
church  than  on  Pentecost  Sunda^^,  because  they  came  from 
different  places.  A  great  working  day ;  but,  alas  !  only  till 
4  p.  M.,  for  then  I  had  to  leave.  The  ''A^orth  Star"  came 
sooner  than  expected.  Twenty-t^^'O  coiifirmations.  Con- 
firmed all  alone. 

June  4.  Arrived  at  La  Pointe  at  1  a.  m.  Read  Mass 
at  7,  and  then  heard  confession  of  sick  Tchetchig-wais. 
Tiu  [  many  confessions  in  the  evening. 

June  5.  Brought  holy  Communion  to  Tchetchigwais 
very  early  in  the  morning:  then  said  Mass,  and  then  I  set 
out  for  Bad  P ! ver  and  arrived  there  in  five  hours.  Stopped 
at  NawadjiwiMis,  where  I  found  a  neat  chapel  upstairs. 
Immediately  alter  my  arrival  I  went  to  visit  sick  Wabado, 
In  the  evening,  prayers  and  sermon. 

June  6.  Last  night  I  did  not  sleep  much  on  account  of 
the  mosquitoes  and  crying  of  babies.  After  Mass  I  carried 
the  Ble;^sed  Sacrament  to  sick  Wabado,  to  w^hom  I  also  gave 
Extreme  Unction.    It  rains  terribly  from  time  to  time. 

June  7.  Corpus  Chnsti.  At  10  a.  m.  I  had  Mass  and 
sermon,  afterwards  baptized  two  adults  and  four  children. 
In  the  afternoon  Vespers  and  sermon.  Towards  evening 
I  called  Nawadjiwans  and  made  an  arrangement  with  him 
for  the  upper  story  of  his  house. 

June  8.  Sailed  from  Bad  River  at  9  a.  m.  and  arrived 
in  La  Pointe  about  2  p.  m.     Soon  afterwards  I  went  to  a 


w***ut^,™»uj.Cte. 


A   LONG   day's   labor, 


32a 


rais 

set 

)ped 


it  of 
fried 
5-ave 

I  and 
jren. 
Iiin^ 
Ihim 

Wed 
to  a 


Rick  half-breed,  the  son  of  Michael  Basinet,  and  heard  his^ 
confession.  Then  I  went  to  Bayfield  to  Colonel  Drew,  who 
paid  me  two  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars  for  Dillon 
O'Brien.     Many  confessions  in  the  evening. 

Jnne  9.  Great  day  of  work.  Heard  confessions  all 
day  long  and  had  some  baptisms.  I  paid  T^awadjiwans 
forty  dollars  for  the  upper  part  of  his  house,  for  a  chapel. 

June  10.  Sunday.  Extraordinary  day  of  work! 
From  Jf.  o'clock  in  the  morning  till  10  o'clock  at  night  I 
had  luork  uninterruptedly ;  remarkably  many  confessions, 
five  sermons,,  twenty-three  baptisms,  and  three  confirma- 
tions; the  church  was  filled  to  its  utmost  capacity. 

Jime  11.  Today  i\ere  is  not  so  much  to  do.  In  the 
aftenioon  I  went  to  visit  sick  Dufaut  and  sick  Chalut  and 
heard  their  confessions.  In  the  evening  there  were  some 
confessions." 

"At'ter  having  perfonned  all  that  was  to  be  done  at  La 
Pointe,  I  went  to  the  mining  town  of  Minnesota,  where 
Kev.  Martin  Fox  is  pastor.  He  has  now  finished  his  large 
and  beautiful  church  and  has  such  a  large  congregation  of 
Germans,  Irish,  and  French,  that  his  church,  which  is  the 
largest  in  the  diocese,  can  scarcely  hold  two-thirds  of  hia 
congregation.  Many  have  to  stand  outdoors  during  divine 
service  on  Sundays.  Luckily  his  church  has  three  doors, 
so  that  the  people,  who  stand  ou  .doors,  can  see  the  priest 
at  the  altar  and  hear  the  sennon. 

"Last  winter  there  were  two  priests  at  Minnesota  Mine, 
namely.  Rev.  Martin  Fox  and  Rev.  John  Chebul,  from 
Camiola  (Krain),  Diocese  of  Laibach.  I  sent  Rev. 
Chebul,  immediately  aftei  his  arrival,  to  Minnesota  Mine, 
in  order  to  learn  English  and  French.  He  devoted  him- 
self with  so  much  earnestness  and  with  such  success  to 
these  two  languages  that  he  preached  and  heard  confessions 
in  English  and  French  for  the  last  three  months.  In  less 
than  six  months  he  has  learned  (and  that  well)  those  two 
languages,  of  which,  previously,  he  knew  scarcely  anything, 


m 


V^^-^. 


324 


KT.    REV.    FRED.-^RIC   BARAGA. 


'I,-' 


i 


w.       Jj'  I". 


saif 


at  which  wc  are  all  a.stonished,  for  such  a  thiuij  was  never 
known  to  us  bofore.  I  have  now  sent  him  to  La  Pointe  (in 
1800),  from  which  place  he  will  attend  Superior  and  other 
smaller  missions.  At  .Minnesota  Mine  he  does  not  need  to 
know  Indian,  but  in  his  j)resei  '  :  Mssion  he  cannot  do  with- 
out it.  1  hope  that,  being  stationed  there  and  being  so 
liighly  gifted  v\ith  the  faculty  of  learning  languages,  ho 
will  be  able,  within  one  year,  to  preach  in  the  Indian  lan- 
guage without  an  interpreter. 

''Having  visited  these  missions  and  provided  for  them, 
I  returned  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  attend  to  my  correspond- 
ence, some  of  which  called  for  a  speedy  answer." 

B.  Baraga  made  a  second  trip  to  the  western  end  of  our 
lake  in  1860  on  business  affairs  connected  with  these  west- 
ern missions.  On  the  4th  of  August  he  arrived  in  La 
Pointe,  and  the  next  day,  which  was  a  Sunday,  he  preached 
four  short  sermons  in  three  languages.  He  praises  Mr. 
Perinier  for  his  work  in  beautifying  the  church.  Next  day 
he  went  over  to  Bayfield  with  Pather  Chebul  and  saw  Hon. 
Henry  M.  Rice  (Indian  name,  Wabi-Manomin),  who 
promised  to  have  a  house  built  without  delay  for  the  priest, 
provided  the  latter  would  come  to  reside  in  Bayfield.  B. 
Baraga  gave  his  consent,  and  that  very  same  day  work  on 
the  parsonage  was  begiin. 

While  at  La  Pointe,  he  was  called  to  Odanah,  Bad 
River  Reservation,  to  attend  sick  Charlotte  Haskins,  and 
stayed  in  the  village  over  night.  The  family  of  Haskins 
have  done  much  in  times  past  for  the  missionaries  who  at- 
tended Bad  River  church,  as  it  was  with  them  the  priest 
generally  stopped.  Edward  Haskins  still  resides  at  the  old 
place  on  the  reserve.  His  brothers,  Charles  and  William 
Haskins,  and  their  sister,  Charlotte,  now  reside  in  Ash- 
land. May  God  reward  them  for  all  they  have  done  in 
years  past  for  the  Fathers  attending  the  Bad  River  Indian 
mission. 

B.  Baraga  then  went  to  L'Anse,  where  he  found  every- 


1 


A    MOST   HAPPY   EVENT. 


325 


thing  in  good  order.  Ho  liad  Mu^s  there  on  the  Feast  of 
the  AHsnniption,  the  church  heing  crowded  with  Fndian 
worshippers.  Sck)!i  after  we  find  him  in  Ilouglitoii,  where, 
on  Siinchiy,  the  llUh  of  August,  he  preached  at  early  Mass 
in  English  and  French,  and  again  in  English  at  late  ^Fass, 
Aviiich  was  said  bv  Rev.  E.  Jacker.  Tlie  next  day  he  went 
to  the  other  side  of  l*ortage  Lake  to  secure  lots  for  a  church. 
Having  visitcnl  several  other  missions  on  Keweenaw  Point, 
he  returned  home. 

One  of  the  happiest  events  of  the  year  for  the  dioceso 
of  Sault  Ste.  JMarie  and  Marcjuette  and  for  the  Indian  mis- 
sion was  the  ordination  of  Kev.  Gerhard  Terhorst,  which 
took  place  on  Sunday,  December  23,  1860.  He  said  his 
first  holy  Mass  on  Christmas  day.  The  bisliop  adds,  in 
recordin<>:  these  facts:  "God  grant  that  he  niav  become  a 
good  missionary !"  The  bishop's  prayer  has  been  heard. 
Again:  "May  21,  1861,  Father  Terhorst  is  preparing  for 
his  de})arture  to  L'Anse."  The  good  Father  has  thus  been 
laboring  in  this  Indian  mission  since  1801,  which  is  now 
over  thirty-nine  years.  May  God  prolong  the  life  of  this 
zealous  Indian  missionary  for  many  a  year  to  come! 


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Sdences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


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CHAPTER   LII. 

BISHOP   BARAGA  ATTENDS   THE   III   PROVINCIAL   COUNCIL   OF 

CINCINNATI. HxiRDSHIPS  ENDURED  ON  THE  WAY 

THITHER. HIS  VISIT  TO  THE  SCATTERING 

MISSIONS  OF  HIS  DIOCESE. 

In  the  winter  B.  Baraga  had  no  communication  with 
the  outside  world  except  by  traveling  long  distances  on 
snow-shoes.  Hence  he  was  obliged  to  make  all  his  episcopal 
visitations  during  the  season  of  navigation  as  far  as  pos- 
sible. However,  in  the  early  part  of  1861  he  was  obliged 
to  deviate  from  the  rule  above  mentioned,  as  he  wished  to 
attepd  the  III  Provincial  Council  of  Cincinnati,  which 
opened  on  the  28th  of  April.  As  navigation  at  the  Sault 
did  not  open  much  before  the  first  of  May,  Baraga  was 
obliged  to  go  on  foot  all  the  way  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to 
Alpena,  at  which  place  he  could  take  a  steamer. 

He  set  out  from  the  Sault  immediately  after  Easter, 
walking  on  snow-shoes  all  the  way  to  Mackinac — a  two  and 
a  half  uays'  journey.  From  Mackinac  to  Alpena  he  trav- 
eled, partly  on  foot  and  partly  on  a  dog  sleigh,  covering  the 
distance  in  five  days. 

As  the  hardships  of  this  journey,  most  probably,  were 
the  cause  of  B.  Baraga's  subsequent  poor  health  and  prema- 
ture death,  we  will  give  some  of  the  particulars,  as  gleaned 
from  his  journal. 

"April  1,  1861.  Easter  Monday.  Day  of  departure, 
at  10  A.  M.  Rode  as  far  as  Sobrero,  then  walked  about 
twelve  miles,  partly  on  snow-shoes,  partly  without  them; 
then  camped ;  a  good  night,  not  very  cold. 

"April  2.    Broke  camp  at  6 ;  walked  all  day  till  about 


EXTRACTS  FROM  HIS  JOURNAL. 


327 


5  p.  M.^  with  gi'eat  liardsliip  and  much  fati^ie,  then  camped 
for  the  night  in  Fridette's  hunting  lodge. 

April  3.  Started  ahout  5  :30  a.  m.,  and  walked  with 
great  fatigue,  w^ithout  snowshocs,  which  were  hurting  me, 
until  1  r.  M.^  when  we  came  to  the  ice  at  Pine  River. 
When  half  way  across,  Bollanger  met  me  with  his  horses. 
I  stopped  over  night  with  him. 

"April  4.  Rode  away  from  Bellanger's  at  6  a.  m.,  and 
arrived  at  Mackinac  at  7 :30  a.  m. 

"April  5.  Departed  from  Mackinac  at  8  a.  m.  with 
Theodore  Wendell,  riding,  and  about  12  o'clock  arrived  at 
Cheboygan,  where  we  stayed  over  night  at  the  home  of  Jos. 
Allair,  whose  wife  is  a  Burke. 

"April  6.  Rode  fourteen  miles  from  Cheboygan  with 
LavigTie's  team,  who  on  the  way  back  fell  into  a  crack  in  the 
ice  and  lost  his  life.     Camped  very  comfortably  that  night. 

"x\pril  7.  Sunday.  Unfortunately  we  could  not  keep 
this  Sunday,  but  walked  many  miles,  partly  on  good,  partly 
on  bad  roads,  until  we  came  to  a  bad,  abandoned  shantv  in 
the  evening  where  we  camped  and  where  it  smoked  much, 
and  there  I  said  the  tvhole  long  office  de  Dominica  in  Albis. 

April  8.  Walked  again,  but  more  on  bad,  than  on  good 
roads,  until  we  arrived  at  Grand  Lake,  where  we  camped 
pretty  well,  for  the  night. 

April  9.  We  started  early  in  order  to  aiTive  at  Thun- 
der Bay,  by  night,  if  possible.  The  roads  were  bad  and 
much  water  everywhere.  Still  we  reached  Alpena  at  about 
7  p.  ]\r.  with  the  help  of  God. 

April  10.  Have  been  feeling  unwell  for  several  days 
on  account  of  constipation.  Laid  down  the  larger  part  of 
the  day.  Partook  of  a  light  breakfast,  but  had  neither  din- 
ner or  supper.  In  the  evening  Mr.  Lockwood  came  and  we 
talked  about  a  place  to  build  a  church.  He  donated  one  lot, 
and  I  paid  him  forty  dollars  for  another.  So  we  will  have 
a  church  in  Alpena. 

April  11.     Am  worse  to-day  than  I  was  yesterday  and 


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328 


RT.   REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


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have  niTich  pain.  Remained  in  bed  all  day,  and  cat  no 
dinner. 

April  12.  Am  feeling  miserable  to-day,  suffering 
severely.  Partook  of  neither  breakfast  nor  dimier.  Re- 
mained  in  bed  until  4  p.  m.  when  I  felt  better. 

April  1 S.  I'his  was  one  of  the  saddest  days  of  my  life. 
May  God  presei've  me  from  such  days !  It  is  a  gloomy  day, 
snowing  and  storming  fearfully. 

The  lishop  continues  in  his  letter:  "After  I  had 
^tayfvI  there  some  days  a  steamboat  came  along  on  which  I 
went  to  J^etroil — and  from  there  per  train — to  Cincinnati, 
to  tl.e  111.  Provincial  Council  which  lasted  from  April  2cS 
until  May  5.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  Council  I  returned 
lionie  and  again  took  up  my  usual  visitations  to  the  mis- 
sions. I  generally  commence  w^ith  the  Southern  part  of 
my  extensive,  but  little  settled  diocese,  but  this  year  pecu- 
liar circumstances  induced  to  begin  with  the  Northern 
part." 

As  to  Baraga's  part  in  the  deliberations  of  said  Provin- 
cial Council  we  know  nothing.  He  mentions  that  the  2d  of 
May  "was  the  commemoration  of  the  deceased  prelates  and 
other  clergymen.  At  9  o'clock  was  Requiem,  at  which  I 
preached.     Dined  at  the  Seminary." 

"May  3.  Wrote  to  the  Central  Direction  of  the  Lud- 
wig  Mission  Society  in  Bavaria,  in  the  name  of  the 
Council." 

The  first  missions  B.  Baraga  visited  after  his  return 
were  ]\[arquette  and  I^egaunee,  both  of  which  were  under 
the  care  of  Rev.  Duroc.  As  there  was  a  church  at  the  last- 
named  place  and  there  were  many  Catholics,  the  people 
asked  for  a  resident  priest,  but  the  bishop  could  not  comply 
with  their  request,  having  no  one  to  send  them. 

In  the  meantime  the  bishop  bought  a  house,  that  stood 
some  miles  away,  had  it  taken  down  and  transported  to 
town  and  put  up  again,  thus  saving  considerable  expense. 

From  there  he  went  to  the  Cliff  Mine,  where  Rev. 


VISITS   THE   SICK   FAR   AWAY. 


329 


Liid- 
the 


Andrew  Andolschek  was  stationed.  Tliis  zealons  Father 
also  had  charge  of  Eagle  Harbor,  which  he  attended  every 
other  Sunday. 

"In  La  Pointe,"  B.  Baraga  writes,  ''Father  John  Clie- 
bnl  is  verv  active.  God  a-rant  that  he  niav  not  exhaust 
himself  prematurelv.  lie  has  a  verv  extensive  and  diffi- 
cult  mission.  Last  winter  he  v^as  called  to  a  sick  man,  who 
lived  ninetv  miles  from  La  Pointe.*  There  was  no  other 
way  to  make  the  journey  thither  and  back  again  than  on 
snowshoes.  It  took  him  six  days  to  go  and  he  was  obliged 
to  sleep  in  the  woods  every  night.  As  he  did  not  know  be- 
forehand how  far  it  was  to  the  sick  man's  village  he  took 
provisions  along  for  only  three  days.  He  had  to  eat  very 
sparingly  therefore  and  suffer  hunger,  besides  enduring  the 
hardships  of  the  journey.  lie  stayed  at  the  place  several 
dayf  instructed  the  Indians  and  half-breeds  and  baptized 
about  thirty  persons,  mostly  adults.  He  can  teach  cate- 
chism and  preach  pretty  well  in  Indian.  A  gentleman 
who  wrote  an  article  about  this  mission-trip  for  a  German 
newspaper,  says,  among  other  things :  "Rev.  Father  Che- 
bul  belongs  to  the  diocese  of  Sault  Ste  Marie  and  we  can 
but  congratulate  Rt.  Rev.  Baraga  for  obtaining  such 
priests,  who  offer  to  God  all  their  poverty  and  hardships 
and  labors  with  apostolic  love  for  the  salvation  of  their 
flock." 


I;i 


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stood 
?d  to 
se. 
Rev. 


*The  bishop  does  not  mention  the  name  of  the  Indian  village  to 
which  F.  Chebul  was  called.  Judging  from  the  length  of  time  it  took 
him  to  make  the  journey  thither — six  days — it  is  highly  probable 
that  the  village  was  Lac  du  Flambeau  (Indian,  Wasswaganing) . 
That  village  is  eighty  miles  by  rail  from  Ashland  and  about  one  hun- 
dred from  Bayfield,  where  F.  Chebul  then  resided.  In  fact,  he  told 
the  writer,  about  a  year  and  a  half  ago,  that  he  had  been  in  Lac  du 
Flambeau  about  the  year  18(52.  He  was  called  on  a  similar  errand  to 
Lac  Courtes  Oreilles  (Indian,  Ottawa-Sagaiganing)  about  the  year 
1865.  It  took  but  three  days  to  make  the  journey  thither.  He  was 
accompanied  by  George  Roussain,  a  half-breed  Indian,  still  living  at 
Couites  Oreilles. 


330 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


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Under  date  of  November  11,  1861,  B.  Baraga  writes: 
It  is  now  three  months  since  I  made  my  last  report  to  the 
Leopoldine  Society.  Since  then  many  things  pleasing  to  a 
Christian  have  occurred  in  this  diocese.  I  visited  the 
southern  part  of  this  diocese,  where  our  most  important 
Indian  missions  are  located.  The  population  keeps  con- 
tinually increasing.  Especially  has  the  mission  of  Cross 
Village  increased  rapidly,  so  that  its  church  is  much  too 
small.  We  therefore  resolved,  the  last  time  we  were  there, 
to  enlarge  it  considerably.  I  encouraged  the  Indians  to 
work  at  it  themselves,  in  order  not  to  be  obliged  to  hire 
high-priced  carpenters.  The  Indians  of  this  mission,  who 
were  converted  a  long  time  ago,  can  w^ork  well.  They 
build  their  own  houses  and  make  their  own  boats, 

"In  the  neighboring  village.  Middle  Village,  they  are 
also  under  the  pleasing  and  consoling  necessity  of  enlarg- 
ing their  church.     The  Indians  belonging  to  this  mission 


have  shown  themselves  willing  to  do  so. 


This  coming 


winter  they  will  make  all  necessary  preparation  for  the 
work." 

On  Sunday,  August,  25,  B.  Baraga  gave  holy  Confir- 
mation at  Harbor  Springs  to  twenty-six  persons  and 
preached  twice  that  day  to  the  Indians.  On  the  28th  of  the 
same  month  he  arrived  at  Grand  Traverse  (Eagletown)  at 
7  p.  M.  sich.  The  next  two  days  he  was  obliged  to  remain 
in  bed.  On  the  31st  he  got  up  but  still  felt  very  weak. 
On  September  1  we  find  the  following  entry :  • 

"Sunday  XV  p.  T.  I  still  feel  weak ;  however,  I  read 
Mass  at  6 :30  and  preached  at  10  o'clock  and  confirmed  six 
persons.     Did  not  preach  in  the  afternoon." 

Baraga  founded  a  new  mission  and  built  a  mission 
chapel  on  the  so-called  Sugar-Island  in  Sault  Ste.  Marie 
River,  twenty  miles  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  There  was  a 
small  settlement  of  Indians  on  the  Island,  some  of  %vhom 
were  already  baptized:  the  othei*s  were  still  pagans.  In 
order  to  give  them  a  better  opportunity  to  become  con- 


DEDICATION  OF   A   NEW  CHAPEL. 


331 


"^onfir- 
and 
of  the 


verted  and  obtain  their  eternal  salvation,  B.  Baraga  caused 
a  small  chapel  to  be  built,  which  he  dedicated  to  St.  Joseph, 
on  the  27th  of  October.  The  chapel  was  crowded  with 
Christians  and  pagans.  All  rejoiced  that  in  tliis  desolate 
out-of-the-way  Indian  place  there  now  stood  a  church. 

He  remained  with  those  Indians  almost  three  weeks, 
said  mass  every  morning  and  instiiicted  them  morning, 
noon,  and  evening.  He  had  the  certain  hope  that  all  the 
Indians  of  this  place  would  be  converted,  and  that  perhaps 
other  Indians  would  come  and  settle  there  so  as  to  live  near 
the  church.  He  promised  to  visit  them  every  month  and 
to  stay  with  them  five  or  six  days  each  time.  He  also 
recommended  them  to  meet  every  Sunday  in  their  church 
before  and  after  noon,  to  say  the  rosary  and  sing  pious 
hymns  in  their  language ;  which  they  did. 

This  church,  although  small  and  built  of  wood,  as  were 
all  his  churches,  nevertheless  cost  much  money  because 
carpenter  wages  were  very  high. 

And  now  let  us  view  B.  Baraga  in  a  new  role,  namely, 
that  of  a  carpenter  for  his  Indian  mission.  There  are 
some  of  his  entries : 

October  3,  1861.  Made  a  tabernacle  for  St.  Joseph's 
Indian  Keserve. 

October  4,  1861.  Still  working  on  tabernacle  and  be- 
gan steps  (on  altar). 

October  5,  1861. 

October  7,  1861. 
Joeeph's  church. 

October  8,  9,  10,  1861.  Worked  for  St.  Joseph's 
church. 

October  11,  12,  1861.  Made  a  nice  small  Baptismal 
casket. 

October  14,  1861.  Worked  the  whole  dav  on  frames 
for  Stations. 

October  15,  1861.  Finished  the  frames  for  the  XIV 
Stations. 


Finished  steps  to-day. 

Made  frames  for  altar  cards,  for  St. 


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332 


RT.    REV.    FKBDERIO   BARAQA. 


October  16,  1861.  Worked  all  day  for  St.  Joseph's 
church. 

October  18,  1861.  Worked  all  day  again  and  finished 
everything  for  St.  Joseph's  church. 

OctolKM*  19,  1861.  Made  some  little  articles  for  the 
church  and  mission  of  St.  Joseph. 

October  21,  1861.  Packing  things  for  transportation, 
for  the  interior  of  St.  eToseph's  church. 

Octolx^r  22,  1861.  Day  of  departure.  It  was  beauti- 
ful in  the  nKU'ning;  it  rained  in  the  afternoon  before  we 
arrived  at  Payment's  place,  but  nothing  was  damaged, 
thanks  be  to  God !    I  stayed  at  Payment's  over  night. 

October  28,  1861.  Said  Mass  at  Pa\'niont's  and  then 
went  to  St.  Joseph's  Mission,  where  we  happily  arrived 
at  noon.     In  the  afternoon  we  arranged  the  altar,  etc. 

October  24,  25,  1861.  Working  continually  in  the 
church  of  St.  Joseph — put  up  wood-shed. 

October  26,  1861.  The  people  Avorked  on  the  wood- 
shed and  carried  in  the  wood.  I  ought  to  have  gone  to 
all  the  houses,  but  I  went  only  to  the  chief,  who,  however, 
had  not  vet  arrived.  In  the  afternoon  and  evening  I  had 
a  considerable  number  of  confessions. 

October  27,  1861.  Sunday  Dom.  XXIII  p.  T.  Mass 
at  10  o'clock  and  sermon.  In  the  afternoon  Stations  and 
sermon.     In  the  evening  a  long  instruction. 

October  28,1861.     Instructions  after  Mass  on  the  pre- 
cepts of  the  church  again  to-day. 
tions.     Every   morning   after   Mass 
instructions." 

We  might  add  many  entries  of  Baraga's  journal,  did 
we  not  fear  to  tire  our  readers.  The  above  are  sufficient 
to  give  them  an  idea  of  the  restless  activity  of  this  saintly 
man.  Praying,  working,  instructing,  filled  up  his  time. 
He  seems  to  have  had  no  time  for  amusements  or  relaxa- 
tions of  anv  kind.  He  continues  in  his  letter  to  the  Leo- 
poldine  Society : 


In  the  evening  instnic- 


and 


evei*y   evening 


-?  1 


HurES    FOB   THE   FUTUUE. 


333 


"Next  year,  when  I  f^et  a  little  iiKHu^y  a«;ain,  I  iiit^^iul 
to  build  another  small  church  in  an  Indian  s<'ttleinent  on 
St.  Martin's  Island  in  Lake  ]\Iichi*jjan,  in  order  that  the 
Indians  there  niav  endjrace  Christirinitv.  8onie  of  thoni 
have  already  expressed  their  desire  to  lM>coine  converted, 
if  only  a  missionaiy  would  come  to  tluMu.  Now,  that  is 
what  I  intend  to  do  this  winter,  in  order  to  build  there  a 
small  church. 

"Another  benefit  also  comes  from  having  churches  in 
Indian  villages,  namely,  the  Indians  asseud)le  there  on 
Sundays  when  no  priest  is  with  them,  and  pray  and  sing 
there." 


l    •' 


^}| 


1' 

1 

CHAPTER  LIIT. 


•I 


'II' 


B.  BAKAtiA  WKITES  ON  THE  CIVIL  WAR ESTABLISHES  A  NEW 

liNDIAN   .MISSION  AT   ST.    AIAK'^In's  BAY VISITS   THE 

MISSION  AT  THE  "bAYE  DES  GOULAIs/' 


In  his  letter  to  tlie  Leopoline  Society,  dated  August  30, 
1862,  B.  Baraga  thus  expresses  himself  on  the  civil  war 
then  raging : 

"This  year  untold  misery  and  oppressive  want  as  to 
the  necessaries  of  life  prevail  evei*ywhere  on  account  of 
the  terrible  civil  war,  which  rages  horribly  in  the  interior 
of  this  once  so  happy  and  peaceable  country.  Thousands 
and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  useful  individuals,  who  were 
the  support  of  their  families,  are  torn  away  from  their 
feeble  parents,  their  helpless  wives  and  children,  and  thous- 
ands of  families  ai*e  plunged  into  the  most  direful  poverty. 
It  is  sad  to  hear  wherever  we  go,  lamentations  and  cries  of 
miserv.  However,  1  must  admit  that  there  is  less  to  be 
seen  and  heard  of  this  misery  in  my  out-of-the-way 
diocese  than  in  the  southern  part  of  this  country,  the  actual 
theatre  of  this  most  sad  war." 

In  consequence  of  the  many  hardships  and  miseries 
endured  during  his  seven  day's  journey  on  foot  in  April> 
1861,  his  health  was  greatly  impaired.  Wheneveir'  he 
walked  but  a  short  distance  even  during  the  following  sum- 
mer he  felt  pain  in  his  breast.  He  thought  that  his  jour- 
neys on  foot  were  at  an  end. 

But  in  the  beginning  of  the  next  winter,  1861-1862, 
he  felt  an  urgent  desire  to  visit  and  convert  a  band  of 
Indians  who  lived  three  days  journey  from  Sault  Ste. 
Marie  at  St.  Martin's  Bay.      He  had  never  been  there  be- 


B8"\BLI6HES   A   NEW   M188ION. 


336 


fore  as  it  was  an  out-of-tlie-\vay  place  and  verv'  difficult  to 
reach.  Considerii)g  the  poor  stale  of  his  health  he  enter- 
tained but  slight  hopes  of  reaching  the  Indian  viUage. 
Still  ho  would  not  give  up  all  hope  witliout  making  at  least 
an  attempt. 

So  ho  put  on  his  snowshoos,  took  a  guide  and  set  o\it  on 
his  journey.  Scarcely  had  he  walked  a  mile  when  he  felt 
such  an  oppression  in  his  left  chest  that  he  thought  he 
would  have  to  fall  down.  Recommending  himself  to  God, 
he  continued  to  walk  on.  lie  could  not  endure  the  thought 
of  giving  up  this  attempt  at  converting  those  poor  Indians. 
Thanks  to  God,  the  feeling  of  oppression  on  his  chest  grad- 
ually decreased  and  finely  disappeared  altogether.  Al- 
though traveling  for  several  days  on  verj-^  bad  roads  with 
heavy  snowshoes  on  his  feet,  the  old,  feeble,  but  zealous 
missioner  felt  no  evil  effect  from  his  journey.  God 
strengthened  His  servant. 

On  the  third  day  he  arrived  at  the  Indian  settlement. 
After  taking  a  much  needed  rest,  he  visited  the  poor  p'^ople. 
He  found  them  without  any  knowledge  of  God  and  of  His 
Son,  "Jesus  Christ,  whom  He  had  sent."  At  first  his 
words  fell  upon  very  poor  soil,  as  the  following  entries  in 
his  journal  show : 

February  7,  18(32.  This  afternoon  at  2  r.  m.  I  arrived 
at  the  Indian  settlement.  I  lodged  in  the  house  of  the 
"trois  filles,"  which  is  neat  and  in  proper  order.  I  went 
to  the  old  chief  and  spoke  to  him  about  religion,  but  he 
answered  that  in  no  case  would  he  become  a  ChristiitU. 

February  8.  I  spoke  to  three  young  Indian  women 
to-day  about  religion,  but  these  poor  creatures  declared 
very  plainly  that  they  would  not  embrace  religion. 

February  9.  Sunday,  Dom.  V.  p.  Ep.  At  ten  o'clock 
I  called  the  chief  and  as  many  as  were  willing  to  come  to 
the  house  of  the  "trois  filles"  and  spoke  to  them  about  the 
necessity  of  the  Christian  religion,  but  the  chief  emphati- 


m 


3;j6 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAOA. 


1^ 

II;  i'^ ' 


.1  '• ' 


I  i 


!;■ 


hi 


cullv  (Ici'larcd  tluit  lu'itlicr  he  nor  any  of  lii.s  jicople  would 
tiikc  rclii^ioii. 

'I'iicHc  (>xtract!H  i'nmi  U.  Harapi's  jonnial  sliovv  that  the 
Indians  of  that  phiiM'  were  sti  if -necked  hcMithens  and  that  at 
least  then  Ik^  did  n«>t  make  numv  converts.  "CJredidcrunt 
quot  (plot  pneordinati  erant  ad  vitani  a'teniani."  It  is 
not  nelikely  tliat  these  nnhaj)|)y  pa<>ans  liad  cionK^  in  contact 
with  had  wliites  and  had  Iinlians  profcwsin^  Cliristianity. 
If  so,  it  is  not  hard  to  cxj)lain  their  outspoken  aversion  to 
religion.  The  seanchdous  lives  of  some  so-calitHl  Christian 
Indians  is  a  g-reat  harrier  to  the  conversion  of  tlieir  pagan 
oountrvmen.  It  is  a  sad  fact  that  contact  witli  the  white 
rac-e  has  always  been  detrimental  to  Indian  conversion  and 
njorality. 

But  his  visit  to  8t.  Martin's  Bay  was  not  entirely  fniit- 
less.  I'ho  word  of  God  penetrated  the  hearts  of  those 
obdurate  pagans,  almost  against  their  will  as  it  were. 
Some  of  them  wore  converted  and  baptized,  and  the  zealous 
missicnary  was  in  hope  of  gradually  converting  tlie  entire 
village. 

He  also  resolved  to  build  a  small  church  there,  in  order 
to  have  a  suitable  place  to  offer  up  Holy  Mass,  preach  the 
Word  of  God,  and  teach  catechism. 

Scarcely  had  Baraga  returned  from  this  new  mission, 
when  he  made  preparations  to  visit  another,  fonnerly 
attended  by  the  Jesuit  Fathers  stationed  at  the  Sault  and 
which  was  but  one  day's  journey  distant.  On  the  day 
appointed  he  departed  early  in  the  morning  and  courage- 
ously made  his  journey  on  foot  to  the  Indian  village, 
located  at  "Baye  des  Goulais."  At  first  he  feared  that  the 
dreadful  oppression  in  his  breast  might  again  appear,  but, 
thanks  to  God,  it  did  not  He  walked  all  day  over  hills  and 
through  valleys.  The  Indians  wondered  when  tliey  saw 
their  aged  bishop  coming  to  visit  them  and  were  much 
rejoiced.  He  spent  many  days  with  them,  said  Mass  every 
day  and  instructed  them.     Many  of  them  made  their  first 


DEPLOKSB    I  ACK  OF    PBIEBTS. 


337 


Coinniiiiiioii  on  this  ocvaHicm.  Tlicy  were  particularly 
j)loaso(l  wlicn  he  |)roiiiis<»d  to  have  a  little  church  built  for 
t-heiii  the  next  spring. 

This  proniiw?  was  fulfilled  during  .the  following  sum- 
mer. B,  Baraga  bought  a  largo  (pnintity  of  hnnlx^r  and 
other  building  material  and  had  it  8hi})pe<l  by  boat  to  the 
Indian  village,  lie  then  engaged  two  French  carpenters 
who  erected  a  neat  little  church  in  a  short  time.  The  whole 
(mtlay  was  but  $252,  from  wb'l.  the  reader  will  readily 
(conclude  that  it  was  not  cpiite  as  large  as  St  Peter's  Church 
at  Rome. 

"During  summer,"  B.  Baraga  writes,  "I  made  my 
visitations,  partly  on  water,  partly  by  land,  or  riding.  Last 
spring  I  visited  the  missionaries  stationed  at  the  copper- 
mines,  who  are  all  very  active  in  the  service  of  God  for  the 
salvation  of  souls  entrusted  to  ^hem.  There  is  a  lack  of 
priests  at  the  mines  of  Lake  Superior.  The  mining  towns 
are  steadily  growing,  new  churches  are  being  built,  and  one 
priest  frequently  has  to  attend  two  or  three  churches  and 
congregations,  a  thing  often  connected  with  many  hardships 
on  account  of  the  distance  of  one  church  from  another. 
Thus  Rev.  Edward  Jacker  attends  two  churches  and  the 
number  of  Catholics  of  both  churches  is  about  four  thous- 
and. A  second  priest  would  be  very  desirable  so  that  each 
of  these  churches  would  have  its  own  resident  priest.  Rev. 
Henry  Louis  Thiele  also  has  two  churches  at  a  large  dis- 
tance from  each  other,  each  having  a  large  congregation. 
Another  of  my  priests,  Rev.  Martin  Fox,  has  four  churches 
and  congregations  to  attend,  which  are  far  apart  from  each 
other.  JSTevertheless  he  endeavors,  as  much  as  possible,  to 
give  divine  services  to  these  different  congregations  on 
Sundays  and  holydays.  How  much  I  desire  to  give  him  an 
assistant,  if  I  had  one. 

"In  like  manner  Rev.  John  Chebul  has  four  churches 
and  congi'egations  to  attend,  which  are  several  days' 
journey  from  each  other.     He  tries  assiduously,  as  much 


,r  \ 


M 


■J  *■ 


i 


i 


% 


'■(.:«  I 


!'i, 


I 


if 


338 


BT.   REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


> 


«■    1 


as  at  all  possible,  to  attend  them,  but  in  so  doing  he  is  ruin- 
ing his  health.  It  is  my  greatest  desire  to  send  one  more 
missionaiy  into  those  regions,  could  I  but  find  one.  It  is, 
however,  difficult  to  find  suitable  priests  for  this  diocese ; 
for  in  eveiy  mission-station  of  this  diocese  the  knowledge  of 
three  or  four  languages  is  necessary,  namely,  English, 
jFrench,  German,  and  in  some  places,  Indian.  There  are 
few  priests,  who  can  speak  so  many  languages  well  and 
fluently.  Several  missionaries,  who  could  preach  in  differ- 
ent languages,  were  obliged  to  leave  this  diocese  because  the 
state  of  their  health  did  not  allow  them  to  perform  such 
arduous  missionary  duties  any  longer." 

The  good  bishop's  letter  gives  us  but  a  very  imperfect 
idea  of  his  daily  labors  as  bishop  and  Indian  missionary. 
During  the  winter  of  1860  and  1861  he  was  alone  most  of 
the  time,  without  an  assistant  priest.  During  all  that  time 
he  was  obliged  to  perform  the  duties  of  an  ordinary  priest, 
attending  not  only  to  the  people  of  the  Sault,  but  also  visit- 
ing outside  missions.  Every  Sunday  he  said  two  Masses, 
generally  preached  two,  often  three,  sermons  in  as  many 
different  languages,  instructed  the  children  in  catechism, 
held  Vespers  or  said  the  Stations.  He  was  assiduous  in 
visiting  the  sick  and  relieving  the  poor,  in  one  word,  become 
"all  to  all"  to  gain  all  unto  Christ.  He  was  as  attentive  to 
the  spiritu;  1  wants  of  the  poorest  Indian  child  as  he  would 
be  to  thosf  of  any  grown  person,  whether  white  or  Indian. 
With  him  color  or  nationality  or  social  position  counted  for 
nothing — the  soul  was  all — everything  else,  nothing. 


rum- 
more 
It  is, 
3cese ; 
dgeof 
iglish, 
re  are 
11  and 
differ- 
ise  the 
a  such 

perfect 
Lonary. 
nost  of 
at  time 
priest, 
m  visit- 
Vlasses, 
5  many 
jchism, 
lous  in 
become 
itive  to 
1  would 
ndirn. 
ted  for 


CHAPTER  LIV. 

BISHOP   BAKAGA''S   LABORS   DURING   THE   YEAR   1863 ANEC- 
DOTES ABOUT  BISHOPS  BARAGA  AND  MARTY. 

As  our  sources  of  information  in  regard  to  the  latter 
years  of  B.  Baraga  are  meagre,  we  prefer  to  give  the  letters, 
which  he  wrote  to  the  Leopoldine  Society,  in  full.  Under 
date  of  August  4,  1863,  he  wrote  from  Cincinnati : 

"^ot  earlier  than  yesterday  did  I  receive  the  kind  letter 
of  the  director  of  the  Leopoldine  Society  dated  June  11, 
I  thank  you  for  the  charitable  help  of  1,000  florins 

my  diocese.     As  I  am  infonned,  the  income  of  the 


1863 
for 


Leopoldine  Society  is  not  very  great  and  many  applications 
for  assistance  had  to  remain  unfilled.  I  return  my  sin- 
cerest  thanks  to  all  benefactors  of  our  missions. 

"I  am  at  present  in  Cincinnati  in  order  to  attend  to  the 
printing  of  an  Indian  work.  As  everything  is  dear  here, 
so  also  printing.  The  printing  of  an  Indian  book  is  partic- 
ularly dear,  as  the  printer  does  not  imderstand  a  single 
word  of  it  and  hence  asks  more  than  for  the  printing  of  an 
English  work. 

We  now  have  sad  times  here,  a  horrible,  all-destroying 
and  desolating  war.  Things  look  very  warlike  and  desolate 
in  Cincimiati ;  everywhere  are  to  be  seen  soldiers,  cannons, 
etc.  They  are  here  to  protect  the  city,  because  a  hostile 
invasion  is  feared.  I  wish  very  much  to  be  through  with 
my  work,  so  as  to  return  to  my  distant  and  quiet  diocese. 
There  we  see  nothing  of  the  war,  except  what  we  read  about 
it  in  our  daily  papers. 

In  my  diocese  everything  continues  in  its  usual,  quiet 
way.     Churches  and  congregations  keep  on  increasing,  but 


I! 


'■I'  • 


340 


RT.   REV.    FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


"in 


unfortunately   the  number  of  my   priests  increases   but 
slowly.    We  suffer  nmch  from  the  want  of  priests.     Unless 
a  priest  have  a  little  of  the  missionary  spirit,  he  will  not 
like  to  go  so  far  north ;  such  priests  prefer  to  remain  in  the 
more  civilized  states.     But  the  few  that  are  in  my  diocese, 
fifteen  in  number ,  are,  thanks  be  to  Go<l,  good  priests,  faith- 
ful and  zealous  laborers  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  and 
each  of  them  has  several  stations  to  attend.    Five  of  them 
are  Indian  missionaries  and  preach  twice  every  Sunday  in 
the  Indian  language,  once  in  the  morning  and  once  in  the 
afternoon.     Poor  Indian  missionaries !     It  requires  much 
patience  and  heroic  self-sacrifi  e  to  spend  one's  life  with  the 
poor,  simple,  and  naughty  Indians.*     May  God  reward 
them  forever !     I  kiiow  the  Indians.     I  have  spent  twenty- 
three  years  with  them  and  I  would  be  with  with  them  still, 
had  not  Providence  called  me  elsewhere.     However,  I  am 
not  yet  entirely  free  of  the  Indian  and  never  will  be  as  long 
as  I  live.     In  the  Sault  I  have  many  Indians,  who  all  come 
to  me  to  confession,  and  whenever  I  go  on  my  visitations  I 
have  Indian  confessions  to  heai'. 

"In  the  northwestern  part  of  these  states  the  Indians 
have  taken  a  great  part  in  the  disturbances,  which  prevail 
here.  Our  Indians,  however,  were  and  are  always  quiet 
and  peaceabla" 

"Since  my  last  report,"  writes  B.  Baraga,  December 
29,  1863,  "which  I  made  from  Cincinnati,  where  I  was 
having  a  new  edition  of  our  Indian  prayerbook  printed,  I 
have  traveled  over  almost  all  my  diocese.     Everything  goes 


*This  is  the  first  time  B.  Baraga  speaks  in  a  disparaging  manner 
of  his  Indians,  calling  them  "naughty."  No  doubt  a  great  change 
had  gradually  come  over  many  of  his  once  fervent  converts.  The 
influx  of  whites,  the  numerous  saloons  in  the  mining  towns  and  else- 
where were  exercising  a  baneful  influence  upon  the  Indian  converts 
and  pagans.  Whisky  and  money  are  the  two  great  enemies  of  the 
red  man. 


A   UR8ULINE  CONVENT   E8TABLISHKD. 


341 


well,  thanks  be  to  God,  and  the  number  of  Catholics  is  con- 
stantly increasing  in  our  congregations  and  missions. 

"My  first  visit  was  to  Ontonagan,  at  Lake  Superior, 
where  Rev.  Martin  Fox  is  untiringly  laboring.  He  is  alone 
without  any  assistant  priest  and  has  four  churches  to 
attend,  which  are  far  distant  from  each  other.  Ontonagan 
is  now  renowned  on  account  of  its  Ursuline  Convent,  which 
was  built  last  year  (1862)  and  which  is  in  good  condition. 
It  is  the  only  convent  in  this  poor  diocese.  Some  years  ago 
I  had  a  convent  of  the  same  Order  in  Sault  Ste.  Marie, 
which  unfortunately  could  not  support  itself,  as  the  place 
is  too  poor.  The  Sisters  could  not  obtain  pupils  enough 
and  hence  the  Ven.  Mother  Superior  determined  to  remove 
to  Canada,  where  they  received  as  many  pupils  as  they  can 
accommodate.  Canada  is  almost  entirely  Catholic — not 
now  anymore — especially  in  country  places  and  small 
towns. 

*'The  above-named  convent  in  Ontonagan  flourishes 
visibly  under  the  blessing  of  God.  It  contains  many  Sis- 
ters within  its  walls,  has  thirty-two  boarding  scholars  and  a 
considerable  day  school.  The  Superioress  of  the  convent 
is  Ven.  Mother  Magdalen  Stehlen,  an  experienced,  prudent, 
and  energetic  woman  of  an  undertaking  spirit,  who  has 
introduced  and  arranged,  many  useful  things.  Last  sum- 
mer she  undertook  a  journey  to  Canada  and  obtained  an 
increased  number  of  members  and  other  assistance,  l^ext 
summer  she  intends  going  there  again  to  promote  thus  the 
good  and  noble  object  she  has  in  view. 

''In  the  other  congregations  and  stations  everything 
continues  in  the  usual  way.  The  poor  missionaries  have 
indeed  much  to  do,  for  their  congregations  are  large  and 
they  are  often  obliged  to  travel  long  distances  and  that  on 
bad  roads,  when,  they  are  called  to  the  sick.  They  are 
always  under  the  necessity  of  hearing  confessions  and 
preaching  in  three  languages,  English,  French  and  Ger- 
man.    They  have  an  almost  continual-  war. to  wage  against 


U.n 


342 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


!  ■      i 


W  '•   ' 


the  vice  of  drunkenness,  which  causes  the  greatest  disorder 
and  phmges  whole  families  into  misery. 

"Onr  now  Disimited  States  exhibit  a  very  sad  spectacle. 
It  is  now  already  the  third  year  that  this  most  pernicious 
civil  war  is  raging.  The  North  wants  to  subdue  the  South, 
which,  however,  does  not  allow  itself  to  be  subjugated,  for  it 
is  too  brave  and  fights  with  great  enthusiasm  for  its  cause. 
The  whole  country  is  being  desolated  and  ruined.  Already 
700,000  men  and  youths,  who  were  the  support  and  brerd- 
eamers  of  their  families,  have  been  slaughtered  in  this 
horrible  war  by  their  brethren  and  fellow  citizens,  and 
countless  useful  citizens  have  become  miserable  cripples  for 
life.  Man}^  of  them  had  both  legs  or  arms  shot  away,  so 
that  they  are  in  the  most  helpless  condition  and  cannot  even 
take  their  own  food.  How  m.  ny  thousands  of  families 
have  been  reduced  through  this  unhappy  war  to  extreme 
poverty !  How  many  have  been  reduced  to  beggary !  How 
many  poor  orphans  have  lost  their  protectors  and  sup- 
porters, wander  about  without  anyone  to  care  for  them  and 
go,  perhaps,  to  meet  their  eternal  ruin !  And  what  vandalic 
desolation  has  not  come  upon  those  States,  which  are  the 
immediate  theatre  of  this  terrible  w^ar !  Whole  towns  and 
cities  have  been  burnt  do^\Ti,  fanns  and  plantations  iniined 
and  large  fertile  tracts  of  land  entirely  desolated !  This 
unhappy  land  now  owes  many  thousand  millions  of  dollars 
and  this  debt  increases  two  million  every  day  during  this 
war.  This  our  country's  debt  will  probably  never  be  paid. 
"We  will  hardly  be  able  to  pay  the  annual  interest  of  these 
debts. 

"The  saddest  thing  is  that  no  one  can  tell  the  end  of  this 
terrible  w^ar  and  that  we  have  no  prospect  of  an  early  peace. 

"The  South  declares  stubbornly  and  enthusiastically 
that  it  will  accept  no  other  conditions  than  the  acknowledg- 
ment of  its  independence,  and  the  North  declares  just  as 
stubbornly  that  it  will  never  acknowledge  the  independence 
of  the  South.     What  wall  come  of  this  God  alone  knows. 


SEVERAL  ANECDOTES. 


343 


edg- 


Here  in  the  distant  North  we  do  not  feel  exactly  the  imme- 
diate evils  of  this  desolating  civil  war ;  only  a  great  dearth 
of  everything.  Evei*;)'thing  has  risen  in  price  terribly. 
For  many  things  we  must  j^ay  twice  or  three  times  as  much 
as  we  used  to  former^; ,  and  it  is  to  be  feared  that  these 
high  prices  will  continue  to  rise." 

We  give  the  following  anecdote  of  F.  Terhorst,  as  it 
gives  an  insight  into  the  kind-heartedness  of  B.  Baraga: 

One  time  B.  Baraga  visited  Father  Terhorst  at  L'Anse. 
An  Indian,  hearing  that  the  bishop  Avas  there,  came  to  see 
him.  In  the  course  of  the  conversation  he  said  to  the  Bis- 
hop :  "You  spoilt  the  Indians ;  you  gave  them  too  much." 
The  good  bishop  seemed  to  pay  no  great  attention  to  what 
the  Indian  had  said  to  him.  When  the  latter  had  departed, 
B.  Baraga  said  with  much  emotion  betrayed  in  his  voice: 
"Did  you  hear  what  he  said  to  me  ^  See,  I  have  done 
everything  for  them,  and  now  they  tell  me  that  I  spoilt 
them."  Then  assuming  a  air  of  authority  he  said  to  F. 
Terhorst :  "Don't  vou  give  them  anvthinc; !"  "Well,  Your 
Grace,"  said  the  Father,  "but  sometimes  it  may  be  impos- 
sible to  refuse  them ;  they  may  be  in  great  need  of  help." 
But  the  bishop  insisted  on  his  prohibition.  While  the  two 
were  thus  conversing  in  the  room,  B.  Baraga  looked  out 
tlirough  the  window  and  saw  a  poor  Indian  woman  coming 
towards  the  house.  "Oh,  there  comes  that  old  begging 
woman  again,"  he  exclaimed,  mentioning  her  name.  She 
was  admitted,  of  course,  to  see  the  bishop  and  F.  Terhorst 
witlidrew.  In  a  few  minutes  the  good  bishop  came  into  F. 
Terhorst's  room  and  said :  "Father,  can  you  lend  me  three 
dollars  to  give  to  that  poor  woman  ?  I  will  return  the 
money."  The  Father  gave  the  desired  amoimt  to  his  bis- 
hop, remarking :  "You  see.  Bishop,  that  we  cannot  always 
carry  out  your  instructions  about  not  giving  alms  to  the 
Indians.  Sometimes  it  may  be  necessary  to  help  them  a 
little." 

It  seems  that  poor  Indian  women  have  the  custom  of 


»  i. 


14 


t ' 


844 


RT.   REV.   FREDERIO   BARAGA. 


going  to  their  spiritual  Father  when  in  corporal  need. 
This  reminds  the  writer  of  a  little  incident  that  happened, 
wo  believe,  to  Bishop  Marty  some  years  ago.  One  day  he 
was  giving  Confirmation  in  a  Sioux  mission  where  some 
Sisters  had  charge  of  the  school.  WTiile  the  good  bishop 
was  preaching  and  praying  and  working  in  the  church,  one 
of  the  Sisters  was  preparing  the  dinner.  A  good  old 
Indian  woman  was  sitting  in  the  kitchen  eyeing  eagerly 
the  preparations  for  the  grand  episcopal  dinner.  The 
Sister  took  the  pot  of  beans  from  the  stove  and  put  a  nice 
roast  into  the  oven.  She  had  occasion  to  go  out  for  a 
moment.  When  she  came  in  again,  what  was  her  horror 
at  seeing  a  hungry  Indian  dog  running  away  with  the  roast 
whilst  the  poor  old  squaw  was  helping  herself  to  the  beans 
and  digging  her  fist  into  the  pot,  at  the  same  time  inno- 
cently exclaiming:  "How  good  the  beans  are  which  the 
good  God  gives  to  our  Father!"  When,  after  divine  ser- 
vice, the  bishop  came  in  and  was  told  by  the  disconsolate 
Sister  how  dreadfully  his  dinner  had  fared,  he  could  not 
help  laughing  heartily  at  the  ludicrous  misfortune,  and  he 
dined  minus  roast  and  beans. 


CHAPTER  LV. 


ii'j 


LABORS  OF  B.  BARAGA  IN  1864 TWO  LETTERS  DATED  SEi»T. 

18  AND  NOV.  29,  1864. 

Instead  of  giving  mere  abstracts  from  Bishop  Baraga's 
few  remaining  letters  to  the  Leopoldine  Society,  we  pre- 
fer giving  them  in  full. 

"Since  my  last  report  many  things  have  happened  in 
these  unhappy  States  (writen  Sept.  18,  1864).  Our  most 
destructive  civil  war  continues  raging  more  violently  than 
ever.  Our  president  does  not  want  to  hear  of  any  pro- 
posals of  peace  and  has  lately  ordered  a  conscription  of  half 
a  million  of  soldiers.  The  whole  country  suffers  in  con- 
sex]uence;  everything  is  twice  and  three  times  as  dear  as 
foraierly  and  the  whole  coimtry  is  being  deprived  of  its 
most  active  and  useful  citizens.  Our  missionaries  suffer 
very  much  as  a  matter  of  course.  Everywhere  they  com- 
plain that  many  members  of  their  congregations  are  being 
taken  away,  others  fly  to  Canada  for  fear  that  they  will  be 
compelled  to  serve  in  the  war. 

This  year  a  Provincial  Council  was  to  have  been  held 
at  Cincinnati,  but  on  account  of  the  war  disturbances  the 
Archbishop  of  Cincinnati  considered  it  advisable  not  to 
have  it  this  year.  I  had  gone  as  far  as  Detroit  to  attend 
the  Council,  when  I  was  informed  that  there  would  be  none 
this  year. 

''My  first  missionary"  visit  this  year  I  made  to  an 
entirely  new  place  called  Alpena,  where  not  long  ago  a 
nice  countrv  town  was  started  and  where  there  are  manv 
Catholics.  I  spent  six  days  in  this  place  and  said  holy 
Mass  on  Sundav  in  a  lar^e  schoool  house.    It  was  the  first 


;^i; 


^  i 


H 

I  ii 


34G 


KT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAGA. 


rr 


M  -I 


>  I  .- 

it. - 


holy  !Mass  ever  said  in  this  place  and  the  people  assistM 
at  it  with  much  devotion  and  feeling.  After  Mass  I 
preached,  and  said  among  other  things,  that  it  would  be 
desirable  to  have  a  church  built  there.  In  the  afternoon 
we  met  again  in  order  to  deliberate  about  building  a 
church.  I  bought  a  lot  in  the  middle  of  the  growing  village 
for  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  and  opened  a  subscrip- 
tion list  t-o  animate  the  people  to  contribute  towards  the 
new  church.  I  subscribed  one  hundred  dollars  as  mv  con- 
tribution,  after  which  some  subscribed  ten  dollars,  others 
twenty  dollars,  forty  dollars  and  fifty  dollars.  Even  the 
Protestant  population  contributed  liberally  and  now  a  nice 
church  will  built  here,  which,  with  God's  assistance,  will 
be  completed  next  year. 

^'From  Alpena  I  went  to  Beaver  Island  in  Lake  Mich- 
igan, on  a  small  steamer,  where  I  had  established  a  mission 
thirty-two  years  bef on  .  Here  the  zealous  missionary 
Father  Murrav  labors.  With  ffreat  labor  and  much  exer- 
tion  he  has  built  a  pretty  large  church  and  a  house  for  any 
priest,  that  may  be  stationed  there.  He  has  accomplished 
much  good  since  he  came  there.  His  principal  care  and 
endeavor  is  to  combat  the  vice  of  intemperance  amongst 
his  peop]^.  For  this  purpose  he  established  a  temperance 
society,  w^hich  many  have  joined.  The  Sunday  I  spent 
on  Beaver  Island  I  confirmed  sixty  persons  and  gave  Holy 
Communion  to  one  himdred  and  ten.  Amongst  the  con- 
firmed were  some  old  people,  who  h3retofore  had  had  no 
opportunity  to  receive  the  Holy  Sacrament  of  Confirma- 
tion. The  first  chance  I  had  I  left  the  island  and  returned 
home.  I  stayed  there  but  a  short  time  as  I  still  had  much 
traveling  to  do  in  this  extensive  and  laborious  diocese. 

"I  visited  La  Pointe,  where  I  founded  a  mission  thirty 
years  ago  and  in  which  Rev.  John  Chebul  labors  with  un- 
daimted,  praisworthy  zeal,  at  present.  He  has  several 
missions  to  attend.  The  principal  place  is  Bayfield,  where 
the  missionary  generally  resides.    His  mission  is  very  labo- 


AGAIN   VISITS   THE   MISSIONS. 


847 


ricms.  He  has  four  cliiirchcs  to  attend,  which  are  far  dis- 
tant from  each  other.  I  spent  ten  days  in  his  mission  and 
confirmed  fifty-three  persons,  mostly  Indians  and  half- 
breeils. 

"From  Bayfield  I  went  to  Ontonagan,  where  we  have 
an  Ursuline  Convent,  the  only  one  in  this  poor  diocese.  It 
is  in  a  flourishing  condition,  has  fifteen  Sisters  and  novices 
and  about  thirty  boarding  scholars;  they  have  also  a  day 
school  for  outside  pupils.  Rev.  Martin  Fox,  a  German 
priest,  is  the  confessor  and  director  of  this  convent,  whose 
active  and  pi*udent  directorship  gives  assurance  that  the 
convent  will  be  kept  in  good  order.  In  addition  to  this 
convent  and  church  to  attend  at  Ontonagan  Rev.  Father 
Fox  has  three  other  churches  to  attend  far  distant  from  each 
other.  At  present  an  assistant  has  been  given  to  him,  who 
relieves  him  considerablv  in  the  care  of  his  extensive  mis- 
sion.  I  confirmed  forty-two  persons  at  Ontonagan  this 
yei'\  On  the  Sunday  which  I  spent  there  I  had  a  real 
missionary  joy.  There  are,  namely,  in  the  neighborhood 
still  some  pagan  Indians.  As  soon  as  they  heard  that  I 
had  arrived,  some  of  them  came  to  me  and  asked  for  Holy 
Baptism.  I  commenced  at  once  to  instruct  them  and  on 
Simday  I  baptized  nine  of  them,  mostly  adults,  for  which 
I  returned  heartfelt  thanks  to  God,  for  it  is  a  long  time 
since  I  baptized  so  many. 

"I  received  much  consolation  and  joy  at  Marquette, 
■where  Rev.  Henry  L.  Thiele  is  now  stationed.  The  church 
there  is  altogether  too  small  to  hold  all  the  congregation. 
The  wish  to  have  a  large  new  church  had  long  ago  become 
loudly  manifested,  but  the  former  priest  being  advanced 
in  years  was  lacking  the  necessary  energ\^  and  determina- 
tion for  undertaking  anything.  But  since  Rev.  Thiele, 
w^ho  has  built  already  many  churches,  arrived  there,  and 
is  actively  developing  his  energies,  everything  is  rapidly 
advancing  and  in  a  short  time  a  beautiful,  durable,  and 
large  church  will  stand  there  unto  the  great  joy  of  his 


III 


t;Pl 
I 


348 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAGA. 


M 


it 


:.  i, 
"It 


faithful  congregation.  The  nionibei*8  of  the  congregation 
have  contributed  to  tlio  building  of  this  new  church,  some 
fifty  dollars,  others  one  hundred  dollars,  others  again  one 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  and  one  gave  even  six  hundred 
dollars." 

In  his  letter  of  November  29,  1864,  B.  Baraga  \\Tite9: 
"I  have  just  returned  from  a  two  months'  visitation 
amongst  the  Indian  missions.  First  I  visited  the  mission 
of  Cross  Village.  I  was  very  much  pleased  at  the  good 
progress  this  mission  has  made  since  my  last  visit.  As  the 
church  was  too  small,  the  Indians  determined  to  build  an 
addition  and  fit  it  up.  What  they  had  resolved  to  do  that 
they  really  did.  They  executed  the  work  so  beautifully 
and  durably  that  no  white  carpenter  could  have  done  it 
better.  It  is  true,  the  zealous  missionary,  Rev.  Louis 
Sifferat,  helped  them  at  it  considerably.  In  order  to  ani- 
mate the  Indians,  who  are  naturally  slothful,  to  work,  he 
himself  put  his  hands  to  the  work  and  encouraged  them 
more  by  example  than  by  word  to  labor  assiduously  at 
enlarging  their  church.  I  remained  until  the  following 
Sunday,  on  which  I  preached  twice  to  the  Indians  and  gave 
Confirmation. 

^'From  there  I  went  to  Middle  Village,  another  Indian 
mission,  which  is  attended  from  Cross  Village.  There  also 
the  mission  church  is  too  small.  Preparations  are  being 
made  to  build  a  larger  one.  I  hope  the  work  will  soon  be 
taken  in  hand.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  see  how  the  Indian 
missions  are  growing,  whereas  the  pagan  Indians  in  the 
woods,  who  will  not  hear  about  convei*sion,  are  remarkably 
decreasing  in  numbers.  I  have  often  heard  from  my 
Indian  guides  on  my  former  missionary  journeys,  when 
passing  by  places :  "Here  was  once  a  large  Indian  village ; 
now  not  a  single  Indian  lives  there,  or  only  a  couple  of 
families,  who  eke  out  a  miserable  existence."  On  the  other 
hand  the  Indians  in  the  mission  stations  increase  more  and 
more  and  live  happy  and  are  satisfied. 


r.i  s  :  ij 


1 


AN   INTERESTING    LETTER. 


349 


''From  !Mi(l(lle  Village  I  went  to  the  mission  of  Arbre 
Croohe,  which  was  mv  first  Indian  mission.  Thirtv-four 
years  ago  I  began  my  missionary  life  here,  which  I  have 
ever  since  continued,  for  I  always  consider  myself  a  mis- 
sionary'. The  Indians  of  this  mission,  especially  the  aged, 
are  always  happy  to  see  their  former  missionary  in  their 
midst  and  1  myself  always  feel  very  happy  when  I  remem- 
ber the  many  consolations  I  had  in  this  mission,  for  then 
conversions  were  still  very  frequent  and  numerous.  Whole 
families  became  converted  and  were  bai)tized  together, 
father,  mother,  and  all  their  children.  The  missionary 
stationed  at  this  mission,  Rev.  Seraphin  Zorn,  is  incredibly 
zealous  and  active,  so  that  I  admonished  him  to  moderate 
his  zeal  a  little  because  he  is  in  danger  of  prematurely 
sacrificing  his  health  and  precious  life.  He  preaches  every 
morning  after  Mass  and  often  makc^  long  journeys  to  visit 
and  instruct  the  Indians  that  live  at  a  distance.  I  con- 
ferred the  Holy  Sacrament  of  Confirmation  here  also  and 
preached  to  the  Indians,  who  likewise  feel  happy,  w^hen 
hearing  their  old  missionary  preach. 

"From  this  mission  I  went  to  Grand  Traverse,  the  mis- 
sion of  the  aged  nr'^sionary.  Rev.  Ignatius  Mrak.  He  has 
been  laboring  in  the  Indian  mission  field  for  a  long  time 
and  his  ministerial  labors  are  ver^^  hard,  for  besides  Grand 
Traverse  he  has  ten  other  smaller  missions  to  attend,  which 
he  visits  from  time  to  time,  and  he  has  to  preach  in  four 
diiferent  languages,  Indian,  English,  French  and  German. 
To  some  of  these  stations  he  is  obliged  to  go  on  foot  and 
carry  all  things  necessar^^  for  holding  divine  service  in  his 
satchel,  to  others  he  goes  on  horse  back  or  in  a  boat.  I 
went  with  him  to  some  of  these  missions  to  administer  holy 
Confirmation,  but  was  often  obliged  to  dismount  from  my 
horse  and  go  on  foot  because  I  was  afraid  that  the  horse 
might  fall  down  and  injure  me  as  tlie  roads  were  uncom- 
monly bad.  I  spent  two  weeks  with  this  excellent  mission- 
ary and  conferred  Holy  Confirmation  at  different  stations 


i 

V  -I  I 


t      'r 


ri 


'  I 


350 


BT.    REV.    FKEDEUIC    HArAGA, 


on  Sunduys.  I  wont  with  him  to  Caq)  River,  where  the 
good  people  built  a  small  church,  so  that  when  tlio  mi»- 
sioiuiry  comes  ho  may  there  read  Holy  ^lass  and  preach. 
I  have  blessed  this  little  church  to  the  joy  of  that  Christian 
congregation.  In  like  maimer  I  blessed  the  spacious 
grave-yard,  which  tho  good  people  have  fenced  in.  I 
would  gladly  have  fulfilled  the  earnest  wish  of  this  good 
congregation  to  give  them  a  resident  priest,  but  unfortun- 
ately I  am  in  want  of  priests.  The  Catholics  of  my  diocese 
are  increasing  in  numbers,  but  seldom  do  priests  offer  them- 
selves to  come  to  this  distant  and  difficult  diocese. 

"From  Carp  River  my  way  led  me  to  Mackinac.  This 
mission  is  very  old,  forJesuit  Fathers  labored  hero  as 
missionaries  over  two  hundred  years  ago.  At  present  this 
mission  is  without  a  priest,  but  the  missionary  at  Point  St. 
Ignace,  Rev.  Andrew  Piret,  comes  here  every  other  Sunday 
and  attends  the  mission.  I  confinned  one  hundred  and 
twenty-three  persons  in  these  two  missions,  partly  children, 
partly  adults.  From  Mackinac  I  set  out  to  return  home, 
where  I  arrived  on  the  26th  of  November. 

"Notwithstanding  my  advanced  age  I  always  feel  very 
well,  thanks  be  to  God.  I  hope  to  serve  the  Lord  in  these 
missions  for  a  long  time.  I  am  very  well  satisfied  with 
my  priests.  They  serve  God  zealously  and  uprightly  and 
they  willingly  bear  privations  and  hardships.  I  assist 
them  as  much  as  possible  and  I  thank  the  Rev.  Directors  of 
the  Leopoldine  Society  for  the  charitable  help  they 
annually  give  me.  In  regard  to  pecuniary  matters  I 
depend  upon  Europe;  whatever  I  have,  I  receive  from 
there.     My  diocese  has  no  income  whatever,  not  a  farth- 


ing !'^ 


I'  ' ) 


■r 


-iimt; 


(IIAPTEII  LVr. 

INTKKKSTINO  ACCOUNT  0¥  TllK   FOUNDING  Ol'  TllK  SLSTKlt's 

SCHOOL   AT    l'aNSE    MISSION B.    BAKAOa's    KIIJST    AND 

LAST  DYING  OIl-T  TO  THE  SCHOOL. 

We  give  the  following  account  as  we  have  it  from  the 
lips  of  Father  Terhorst,  the  venerable  pastor  of  the  above 
named  mission,  a  most  zealous  missionary  who  has  dovotod 
thirty-nine  years  to  the  religious,  ir.oral  and  social  elevation 
of  the  Chippewa  Indians  of  his  missiv)n.  We  hope  that 
the  Rev.  Father  will  not  bo  offended  at  the  libertv  we  take 
of  giving  his  most  interesting  narrative  to  the  i)ul)lic  for 
the  honor  of  God  and  the  edification  of  the  reader. 

Father  Gerhard  Terhorst,  an  Hanoverian  by  birth,  was 
ordained  by  Bishop  Baraga  in  1860,  and  in  the  following 
year  was  appointed  to  succeed  Rev.  Edward  J  acker  as 
pastor  of  the  L'Anse  mission.  The  bishop  told  him  to  go 
there  remarking  that  he  had  spent  ten  of  the  most  pleasant 
years  of  his  life  there.  At  first  F.  Terhorst  felt  lonesome 
in  his  Indian  mission  and  wished  to  leave.  But  B.  Baraga 
encouraged  him  to  stav  and  advised  him  to  busv  himself 
with  manual  work.  Beins;  entirelv  isolated  from  the 
society  of  the  whites  and  confined  exclusively  to  his 
Indians,  the  young  Father  soon  leaimed  to  talk  Chippewa 
fluently. 

The  government  had  appointed  a  certain  ]\[r.  D.  as 
Indian  teacher  for  the  L'Anse  Reservation.  He  was  the 
father  of  seven  children,  but  totally  unfit  to  teach  Indian 
children.  F.  Terhorst  soon  saw  this  and  w^as  determined 
to  secure  Sisters  for  his  school.  Mr.  D.  was,  of  course, 
highly    displeased     and     in     a    letter     complained     of 


1 


li ! ' 


*-4  , 


"li 


4i: 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 

B.     Baraga.       B.     Baraga     wrote 

to 

to    molest    Mr.     D.,    advising    him, 

at 

362 


the     father     to 
Terhorst    not 

the  same  time,  of  the  impracticability  of  having 
Sisters  in  L'Anse,  as  there  were  no  means  of  sup- 
porting them.  But  F.  Terhorst  did  not  relinquish  his  idea. 
]VIr.  D.  then  tried  to  turn  the  Indians  against  him  and  made 
up  a  petition  to  have  him  removed.  lie  endeavored  to  get 
the  Indians  to  sign  the  petition,  who,  however,  politely  but 
fiiTTilv  refused.  So  it  was  sent  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie  without 
their  signatures.  The  good  bishop  felt  somewhat 
ag'grieved  at  F.  Terhorst  and  wrote  to  him :  "I  forbid  you 
in  virtue  of  holy  obedience  to  speak  against  D.  to  have  him 
removed."  Next  Simday  the  Father  told  his  Indians  what 
the  bishop  had  written  to  him,  assuring  them,  however,  tiiat 
his  sentiments  in  regard  to  this  matter  remained 
unchanged.  ''We  are  not  allowed  to  speaJc/'  he  told  them, 
"but  we  can  think  about  this  matter." 

Mr.  D.  finallv  realized  that  it  was  useless  for  him  to 
stav.  His  school  was  a  failure  and  but  few  children 
attended  it,  and  he  saw  it  would  be  the  best  thing  for  him 
to  go.  So,  one  day,  he  came  to  F.  Terhorst  and  offered  to 
leave,  if  the  latter  would  buy  his  furniture,  which  he 
agreed  to  do.  This  left  the  school  without  a  teacher,  at 
least  for  the  present. 

Unexpectedly  Sister  Agatha,  now  Provincial  of  the  St. 
Joseph  Sisters  of  St.  Louis,  and  Sister  Julia  came  in  a 
boat  with  Father  Jacker  from  Hancock,  Mich.,  to  the 
L'Anse  mission.  Ven.  Sister  Agatha  was  Avell  pleased  with 
the  place  and  said  that  they  were  willing  to  take  charge  of 
an  Indian  school.  F.  Terhorst  was  highly  delighted  at 
this  hopeful  prospect  of  securing  good  Sisters  for  his 
school.  IIo  told  the  Ven.  Sister  Agatha  and  her  com- 
panion, Sister  Julia,  that  he  would  inform  them  within  two 
weeks  of  his  decision  in  the  matter,  which  of  course, 
depended  on  the  consent  of  Bishop  Baraga,  The  bishop 
happened,  soon  after,  to  be  at  Hancock  and  the  subject  was 


UNEXPECTED   RELIEF. 


353 


e  to 
1,  at 
aving 

sup- 
I  idea, 
made 
to  get 
Lybut 
ithout 
ewhat 
id  vou 
^e  him 
s  what 
r,  that 
lained 

them, 

lim  to 
ildren 
him 
red  to 
ch  he 
ler,  at 

he  St. 
in  a 
T:o  the 
with 
Irsce  of 
ted  at 
T  his 
com- 
n  two 
urse, 
hishop 
',t  was 


broaehe<l  to  him.  He  answered,  as  usual,  that  he  would  be 
glad  and  willing  to  have  the  Sisters  take  charge  of  the 
L'Anse  Indian  school,  but  that  he  did  not  know  how  they 
were  to  be  supported.  F.  Terhorst  told  the  bishop  that  he 
had  never  asked  him  for  a  contribution  nor  did  he  expect 
any  from  him  now;  that  all  he  wanted  was  his  consent. 
This  the  bishop  gave. 

As  Father  Terhorst  was  about  leaving  the  room,  B. 
Baraga  told  him  to  wait  a  moment,  when  he  forced  upon 
him  his  silver  watch  as  an  offering  for  the  school.     At  first 
the  Father  declined  to  take  the  poor  bishop's  watch,  but 
the  latter  insisted,  saying  he  had  another  at  home.     So 
Father  Terhorst  reluctantly  accepted  the  gift.    Going  into 
another  room  where  Fathers  Jacker,  Dwyer,  and  Sweeny 
were,  he  held  up  the  watch  saying :     "What  will  you  give 
me  for  the  watch?"     Father  Sweeny  offered  $25.00  and 
the  watch  was  his.     This  aid  came  very  opportunely,  as 
there  was  a  freight  charge  of  $23.00  due  on  the  Sisters' 
baggage,  which  Father  Terhorst  would  not  have  been  able 
to  pay  had  it  not  been  for  this  providential  donation  of  the 
good  bishop.     So  the  Sisters  began  their  labors  among  the 
poor  Indian   children  of   L'Anse.      F.    Terhorst   surren- 
dered to  them  his  o^vn  house  and  went  to  live  in  a  room  in 
the  rear  of  the  church. 

Shortly  after  the  Indian  agent,  Mr.  S.,  arrived  and  was 
highly  displeased  at  what  he  considered  the  Father's 
encroachment  on  his  rights.  "It  is  not  the  priest's  busi- 
ness, but  the  agent's,"  said  he,  "to  appoint  a  teacher  for  the 
school.     I  will  send  a  teacher  for  the  school." 

The  next  day  a  great  Indian  council  was  convened 
across  the  bay  at  the  Protestant  mission.  Father  Terhorst 
instructed  the  headmen  to  stand  by  him  firmly  in  this  most 
important  matter,  and  he  gave  them  plainly  to  understand 
that  imless  they  did  so  he  would  resign  and  leave  at  once. 
There  were  two  theologians  stopping  with  him  at  the  time. 


i:i!! 


I  jiii 


:  in 


w- 1 


354 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAGA. 


[r-  ■ 


id!' 


They  went  to  the  council  out  of  curiosity,  but  Father  Ter- 
iiorst  stayed  at  home. 

When  the  council  was  opened  the  agent  unfolded  his 
plan,   which  was   to  remove  the   Sisters   and   appoint   a 
teacher.     At  this  the  Indians  grew  fearfully  excited,  and 
shouting  and  brandishing  their  tomahawks,  they  told  him 
it  was  their  doings  and  their  will  that  the  Sisters  were  there 
and  that  they  did  not  want  to  have  them  removed.     The 
agent  became  greatly  alarmed  and  his  face  grew  pale  as  a 
sheet.    He  thought  his  last  moment  was  come  and  that  his 
scalp  would  be  lifted  off  his  head.    Luckily,  a  good  thought 
struck  him,  and  he  said:    "We  will  let  this  matter  about 
the  school  pass  for  the  present.    I  will  see  Father  Terhorst 
and  we  will  arrange  all  things  satisfactorily."     Kext  day 
he  called  on  Father  Terhorst  and   said  he  was  highly 
pleased  to  see  the  Sisters  have  charge  of  the  school.     And 
so  no  further  attempts  were  made  to  disturb  the  school. 
The  school  was  opened  in  1866  and  has  been  held  ever 
since  and  has  done  incalculable  good.     At  present  (1895) 
it  has  sixty  to  seventy  white  orphans  and  forty-eight  In- 
dian boarding  scholars  and  forty  day  scholars.     All  the 
buildings  are  large  and  solidly  built  of  stone.    Father  Ter- 
horst, although  now  an  old  man,  enjoys  comparative  good 
health  and  superintends  the  school  and  mission  with  watch- 
ful care  and  fatherly  kindness.     He  is  every  inch  an  In- 
dian missionary,  and  woe  to  the  man  that  dares  to  run 
down  the  Indian  in  his  presence !    God  grant  that  his  use- 
ful and  self-sacrificing  life  may  be  prolonged  for  many 
a  vear ! 

From  the  lips  of  Father  Terhorst  we  also  have  the  fol- 


lowing interesting  anecdote. 


When  B.  Baraga  was  in  his 


last  sickness,  only  a  few  days  before  his  death,  F.  Terhorst 
called  on  him.  He  inquired  of  the  good  Father  how  he 
was  getting  on  with  his  school.  F.  Terhorst  told  him  it 
was  doing  well.  The  bishop  then  pointed  to  a  tin  box  on  a 
libraiy  shelf  and  requested  him  to  hand  him  the  box,  which 


HE  GAVE   HIS   ALL, 


355 


I  ever 
895) 
t  In- 

II  the 
Ter- 
good 


ie  f  ol- 
in  his 
^horst 
[>w  he 
|im  it 
on  a 
Ivhich 


was  done.  Then  he  asked  him  to  take  the  key  of  the  box 
from  under  his  pillow  and  give  it  to  him.  With  his  weak, 
trembling  hand  the  bishop  opened  the  box  and  told  Father 
Terhorst  to  take  the  money  in  it,  which  was  twenty  dollars. 
Upon  F.  Terhorst's  remark  that  it  was  all  the  money  he 
(the  bishop)  had,  and  that  it  was  not  right  to  take  it,  the 
sick  prelate  answered :    "I  don't  need  anv  more  money — 

X  1/1/ 

take  it !' '  So  to  the  last  he  showed  his  great  esteem  for 
Father  Terhorst  and  his  Indian  school.  He  gave  him  the 
last  money  he  had  and  died  absolutely  penniless. 

Sister  Julia,  who  is  now  at  the  Mother-House  iv  St. 
Louis,  Mo.,  gave  the  writer  the  following  interesting  state- 
ment as  to  the  founding  of  the  Indian  boarding  and  day 
school  at  the  L'Anse  mission  (Assinius  P.  O.,  Mich.)  : 

"When  in  June,  1866,  two  Sisters  of  St.  Joseph,  Sister 
Agatha  and  Sister  Julia,  from  the  Mother-House  of  St. 
Louis,  were  sent  by  Rev.  Mother  St.  John  to  see  and  nego- 
tiate with  Bishop  Baraga  concerning  the  establishment  of 
two  Houses  in  his  diocese,  he  could  not  sufficiently  express 
his  joy  and  satisfaction  at  the  prospect  of  having  good 
schools,  wherein  the  little  ones  of  his  flock  could  be  trained 
up  in  the  fear  and  love  of  God;  and  when  they  told  him 
that,  if  he  so  desired,  they  thought  their  Rev.  Mother 
would  also  send  a  little  colony  to  L'Anse  to  open  a  school 
for  the  numerous  Indians,  among  whom  he  had  labored  for 
ten  years,  he  could  no  longer  contain  himself,  but  wept 
tears  of  joy  and  gratitude. 

"Three  colonies  subsequently  left  St.  Louis  for  the  fol- 
lowing places  and  arrived  there  in  the  month  of  August  of 
the  same  year,  viz:  St.  Mary's  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  St. 
Joseph's  at  Hancock,  and  St.  Xavier's  at  L'Anse,  and 
probably  no  one  experienced  greater  joy  than  the  saintly 
bishop,  when  told  of  the  assured  success  of  these  three  es- 
tablishments. As  long  as  he  lived  he  proved  himself  their 
friend  and  benefactor." 


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p 


CHAPTER  LVII. 

REMOVAL  OF  THE  EPISCOPAL  SEE  FIJOM  SAULT  STE. 
MARIE  TO  MARQUETTE. 


In  the  early  part  of  1865  B.  Baraga  was  asked  by  some 
of  his  priests  residing  in  the  Upper  Peninsula  of  Michi- 
gan to  remove  his  episcopal  see  to  a  more  central  point  of 
the  diocese.  One  of  these  was  Father  Jacker,  who  was 
very  intimate  with  his  bishop,  as  their  mutual  correspond- 
ence discloses,  and  who  was  also  very  much  beloved  and 
respected  by  him.  Under  date  of  February  23,  1865,  B. 
Baraga  writes  him  as  follows : 

"1  wrote  to  you  lately  that  I  would  speak  to  you  orally 
regarding  the  removal  of  my  episcopal  see.  But  I  can  tell 
you  now  very  briefly  my  opinion  in  the  matter.    .    .    . 

"You  say  that  my  see  in  the  Sault  is  out  of  the  centre 
of  the  diocese.  But  that  is  not  correct.  You  are  thinking 
only  on  my  northwestern  missions  at  Lake  Superior ;  but 
I  have  almost  as  many  missions,  though  not  so  populous, 
in  the  southern  part  of  my  diocese  at  Lake  Michigan: 
Alpena  (where  a  large  church  is  now  being  built),  Point 
St.  Ignace,  Mackinac,  Beaver  Harbor,  Cross  Village,  Little 
Traverse,  Grand  Traverse,  with  five  or  six  missions.  All 
these  would  complain  and  feel  bad  were  I  to  remove  my 
episcopal  see  to  Lake  Superior.  An  old  Latin  proverb 
says: 

"Si  in  qua  sede  sedes, 
Et  tibi  commoda  sit  ista  sedeg. 
In  ista  sede  sede, 
Neque  ab  ea  recede." 


THE   SEE   REMOVED. 


357 


"We  shall  therefore  contiiiiie  sitting  on  our  old  seat 
until  death  takes  us  off  from  it. 

''Your  innermost  loving  Father  in  Christ, 

"+rKEDERIC." 

It  seems,  however,  that  Father  Jacker  did  not  despair 
of  being  able  to  induce  the  bishop  to  change  his  mind. 
This  appears  from  a  letter  of  reply  written  to  him  from 
the  Sault  and  dated  October  26,  1865.  B.  Baraga  writes 
him  as  follows : 

"Your  worthy  letter  of  the  7th  inst.  unfortunately  did 
not  come  to  hand  until  today.  Dear  F.  Jacker,  your  St. 
Scholastica  Remedy  has  worked  wonderfully!  All  of  a 
sudden  it  came  before  the  eves  of  my  mind  that  I  am 
bound  in  conscience  to  remove  the  episcopal  see  to  Lake 
Superior.  I  choose  Marquette,  first  because  of  the  name ; 
^Marquettensis'  is  more  proper  than  'Hancockensis.'  Han- 
cock w^as  a  heretic  or  perhaps  an  infidel ;  Pere  Marquette 
was  a  saintly  missionary  'cujus  memoria  in  benedictione 
est.'  Secondly,  Marquette  is  a  pleasant,  quiet,  and  central 
place,  with  many  means  of  communication.  .  .  .  (My 
God,  what  is  this?  I  can  scarcely  write  any  more;  my 
right  hand  is  lamed.  O,  do  use  the  St.  Scholastica  Remedy 
for  my  right  hand;  otherwise  I  will  soon  be  unable  to 
write.") 

A  change  of  mind  came  over  the  good  bishop  later,  as 
we  see  from  his  letter  to  Father  Jacker,  dated  December 
22,  1865: 

"I  know  not  whether  your  prayer  continues  to  work  or 
what.  I  had  no  peace  of  mind  until  I  resolved  to  remove 
to  Hancock.  For  a  long  time  I  was  reluctant  to  do  so; 
but  it  did  not  help.  In  Hancock  I  am  in  the  midst  of  my 
missionaries  and  can  have  a  Pontifical  High  Mass,  a  thing 
I  could  not  have  in  Marquette,  where  I  have  but  one  assist- 
ant priest.  And,  moreover,  all  bishops,  as  we  see,  reside 
in  the  principal  city  of  their  respective  diocese — Balti- 


F 


I: 

!      ; 


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.    !l 


ii  ( 


\  a 


1: 

i' 
i)    i 


b58 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


ur: 


tit 


more,  Xew  York,  Boston,  Philadelphia,  Cincinnati,  Chi- 
cago, Milwaukee,  Detroit,  etc.  Now,  Hancock  is  at  least 
three  times  as  large  as  Marquette,  with  Houghton  near  by. 
My  successor  would  blame  me  for  having  removed  my  epis- 
copal see  to  a  small  place  in  preference  to  a  larger  one.  In 
May,  God  willing,  I  will  come  and  live  in  the  house,  which 
you  have  bought  prophetically  (?)  in  my  name,  and  I  shall 
build  an.  addition  to  it.  Is  the  long  side  or  gable  end 
towards  the  street  ?     You  may  speak  of  it ;  it  is  no  secret." 

Still  Hancock  did  not  become  the  episcopal  see,  as  B. 
Baraga  had  at  last  intended.  "Man  proposes,  but  God  dis- 
poses." Rome  spoke  and  that  ended  the  matter.  We  have 
before  us  B.  Baraga's  letter  to  F.  Jacker,  dated  Sault  Ste. 
Marie,  Mich.,  December  11,  1865; 

"Rev.  F.  Jacker — The  answer  from  Rome  has  arrived. 
The  Holy  Father  allows  mo  to  remove  my  episcopal  see 
to  Marquette  (not  to  Hancock),  but  I  am  to  retain  the 
former  title,  ^Marianopolitanus,'  besides  the  new  one  *Mar- 
quettensis.'  Very  curious.  Such  an  answer  I  had  not  ex- 
pected. I  shall  therefore  remove  to  Marquette,  but  I  will 
never  use  the  two  titles,  except  when  writing  to  Rome.  On 
all  other  occasions  I  will  always  w^rite :  Bishop  of  Upper 
Michigan." 

In  his  two  letters  to  the  Leopoldine  Society,  dated 
Sault  Ste.  Marie,  March  24,  1866,  and  Marquette,  August 
4,  1866,  he  speaks  at  greater  length  of  the  reasons  impel- 
ling him  to  remove  his  see  to  Marquette.  We  will  give 
both  letters  in  full,  for  they  are  the  last  letters  he  himself 
wrote  to  said  society.  His  two  letters  of  1867  to  that  so- 
ciety w^ere  written  by  Rev.  F.  Jacker,  in  his  name,  and 
over  his  signature,  as  he  was  then  unable  to  write  himself, 
his  right  hand  being  paralyzed. 

"This  time  I  have  to  inform  the  Leopoldine  Society  of 
an  affair  very  important — at  least  to  us  here — namely,  the 
transferring  of  my  episcopal  see  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to 
Marquette,    at    Lake  Superior.     For    several    years    my 


nself 

t  so- 

and 

self, 

fy  of 
,,  the 
lie  to 

my 


LOCATED   AT   MARQUETTE. 


859 


I  Si  11  i 


missionaries  at  Lake  Superior  asked  me  to  coine  and 
live  nearer  to  tlieni,  but  I  kept  on  postponing  it.  Finally, 
last  fall  I  resolved  to  fulfill  their  wish  and  petitioned  the 
Roman  See  for  permission  to  do  so,  which  request  was 
granted  without  any  difiiculty.  So,  in  the  month  of  May, 
as  soon  as  navigation  opens,  I  shall  remove  to  Marquette. 

'''The  reason  of  this  removal  is  the  greater  facility  of 
comnumicating  with  my  missionaries.  This  place,  Sault 
Ste.  Marie,  is  an  out-of-the-w^ay  place,  with  which  during 
five  months — from  the  end  of  November  till  the  beginning 
of  May — there  is  no  communication  possible  except  by 
traveling  on  foot  with  snowshoes.  Navigation  is  impos- 
sible on  account  of  the  ice,  and  roads  there  are  none  here 
for  horses.  The  letters  we  write  during  winter  have  to  be 
carried  by  mail  carriers,  who  are  obliged  to  travel  on  snow- 
shoes  hundreds  of  miles  through  frightful  forests  before 
they  c-ome  to  a  station  whence  a  person  can  travel  with  a 
horse.  When  I  write  in  winter  to  a  missionary  at  Lake 
Superior  I  cannot  expect  an  answer  in  less  than  two 
months.  It  takes  one  month  for  the  letter  to  get  to  the 
missionary,  and  another  month  for  the  answer  to  come  to 
me.  And  this  w^ill  never  get  better  here.  They  will  never 
build  wagon  roads  here  on  account  of  the  horrible  desolate- 
ness  and  poorness  of  the  land  and  on  account  of  the  great 
distance  from  settled  places. 

'*It  is  quite  different  now  at  Lake  Superior.  I  say 
now,  for  ten  or  tAvelve  years  ago  the  Lake  Superior  coun- 
try was  as  yet  but  little  settled.  At  present  public  roads 
have  been  built  ever^^where,  on  which  a  person  can  travel 
and  ride  in  summer  as  well  as  in  winter.  There  are 
railroads  there  which  are  in  operation,  and  others 
are  being  constructed.  Hence  I  remove  my  episcopal  see 
from  this  lonesome  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  Marquette,  which 
is  far  more  favored.  I,  therefore,  request  the  Reverend 
Directors  of  the  Leopoldine  Society  to  direct  hereafter 
their  letters  to  me  to  Marquette,  Lake  Superior,  Michigan. 


i' 


If' ' 


P 


m 


_ 


360 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


t-^:r 


"I  do  not  know  how  the  winter  is  in  Europe ;  with  us 
here  it  is  extremely  cold.  The  thennometer  of  Fahren- 
heit, which  we  use  here,  is  generally  10,  20,  30  degrees 
below  zero,  and  twice  it  sank  even  to  40  degrees.  The 
French  priest  who  is  stationed  here,  and  who  in  his  youth 
was  in  Kussia,  says  that  even  in  Russia  the  thennometer 
does  not  sink  to  40  degrees  below  zero. 

"Our  mission  affairs  go  on  prosperously,  thanks  be  to 
God.  The  number  of  my  missionaries  increases  and  new 
churches  are  being  built  from  time  to  time  because  the 
population  in  the  country  keeps  on  continually  increasing. 
Our  churches,  it  is  true,  are  but  of  wood  and  small  in  com- 
parison with  churches  of  old  countries,  still  they  are 
houses  of  God  and  serve  the  same  purpose  for  which  large 
and  magnificently  built  churches  are  constructed." 

In  his  second  letter  of  that  same  year,  dated  Marquette, 
Mich.,  August  4,  B.  Baraga  writes : 

"In  my  last  report  I  mentioned  that  with  the 
approbation  of  the  Holy  Roman  See  I  had  transferi*ed 
my  episcopal  see  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie  to  Marquette,  be- 
cause communication  is  far  more  easy  with  Marquette  than 
with  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  especially  during  winter.  Mar- 
quette is  named  after  one  of  the  first  and  most  zealous 
Jesuit  missionaries  of  this  country.  It  is  a  beautiful 
small  city  situated  at  Lake  Superior ;  it  is  small  as  yet,  but 
growing  rapidly.  This  summer  about  forty  houses  are 
being  built. 

"The  church  in  Marquette  is  a  beautiful  large  build- 
ing. It  is  the  largest  and  most  beautiful  church  in  Upper 
Michigan,  a  veritable  cathedral,  which  was  begun  last  year 
and  was  completed  this  year.  It  has  cost  over  twelve  thou- 
sand dollars,  which  is  very  much  for  us  in  Upper  Michi- 
gan. Unfortunately,  it  is  not  all  paid  for  yet  and  there  is 
still  a  heavy  debt  on  it 

"From  here  I  make  my  canonical  visitations  to  the  dif- 
ferent mission  stations  at  Lake  Superior.     This  summer 


1: 


TO  START  ON  A  MISSIONARY  TOUR. 


361 


I  have  been  almost  continually  traveling.  Only  from 
time  to  time  do  I  return  home  for  a  few  days  to  answer  let- 
ters, of  which  I  always  find  a  great  number  on  hand. 

"Everything  goes  its  usual  way  in  the  different  mis- 
sions. Things  are  everywhere  arranged  as  in  regular 
parishes,  with  the  only  difference  that  priests  are  obliged 
to  preach  and  hear  confessions  in  three  or  four  different 
languages — English,  German,  French,  and  Indian — in 
order  thus  to  satisfy  all  the  hearers,  who  are  people  of  dif- 
ferent countries.  In  this  very  thing  consists  the  greatest 
trouble  of  the  priests  of  this  diocese  and  it  is  with  very 
great  difficulty  that  the  bishop  can  find  priests  who  can 
speak  these  different  languages. 

"Thus  far  I  have  visited  the  white  missions,  but  in  a 
few  days  I  will  start  on  a  journey  to  the  Indian  missions, 
which  are  still  more  interesting  than  those  of  the  whites." 


hi 

m 


\ 
i    I 


1 


i  i 


i  1 


<t. 


•CHAPTER  LVIII. 


BI.SJIOI"  BARAGA  S  LAST  SICKNESS  AND  DEATH. 


!:'■ 


!  ( 

lUiu 


»i.  ■ 


Father  Jacker,  writing  in  the  bishop's  name  to  the 
Leopoldine  Society,  under  date  of  January  28,  1867,  says: 

"Hitherto  I  enjoyed  continually  good  health,  but  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Plenary  Council  of  Baltimore  a  great 
sickness  befell  me,  which  still  continues  and  renders  me 
unfit  for  all  business.  A  German  paper  has  published  the 
following  account  of  my  sickness : 

"  'The  Apostolic  Delegate,  Archbishop  Spaulding,  then 
took  his  seat  on  the  platfonii  before  the  altar  and  the 
Council  was  opened  with  the  prescribed  prayers  and 
hymns,  after  which  Rev.  Dr.  Keough,  one  of  the  secre- 
taries, read  tne  decrees  of  the  Council.  The  archbishop 
then  requested  the  people  to  pray  for  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop 
Baraga,  Avho  was  lying  very  sick  at  St.  Agnes'  Hospital. 
Divine  service  concluded  with  giving  the  Apostolic  Bene- 
diction. We  regret  to  be  obliged  to  state  that  Rt.  Rev. 
Bishop  Baraga,  whose  diocese  embraces  the  Northern  Pen- 
insula of  Michigan,  besides  the  adjacent  islands,  was  struck 
with  apoplexy  in  the  archiepiscopal  residence  and  now  lies 
in  a  critical,  condition  at  St.  Agnes'  Hospital.  As  we 
were  informed,  the  Rt.  Rev.  Prelate  was  found  imcon- 
scious  in  the  corridor  near  the  steps,  and  it  is  believed  that 
he  fell  down  some  steps  when  he  was  struck  with  apoplexy. 
The  episcopal  cross  has  somewhat  injured  his  breast.  Sev- 
eral eminent  physicians  treat  the  Rev.  Prelate.  As  he  is 
a  German  (?)  bishop  and  a  reader  and  friend  of  our 
paper,  we  consider  ourselves  doubly  obliged  to  ask  the 
prayers  of  our  readers  for  this  pious  man.' 


HIS   LAST   SICKNESS. 


3G3 


i\  \i\ 


"I  feel  contiiiiially  yet  the  effects  of  the  ahove-nien- 
tioiicd  aj)0})lectic  stroke.  I  am  not  only  unfit  to  write — it 
is  only  with  great  difficulty  and  after  long  exertion  that 
I  can  scarcely  sign  my  name — but  I  also  feel  myself  unfit 
for  all  business.  I  hope,  however,  that  it  will  be  better 
next  spring.  At  the  Plenaiy  Council  a  Coadjutor  was 
given  me,  but  it  is  yet  undecided  who  it  will  be.  Three 
names  were  sent  to  Rome,  as  usual,  but  the  decision  will 
not  arrive  before  next  summer. 

"One  of  tlie  most  pleasing  things  I  have  to  report  in 
regard  to  the  j^rogi^ess  of  religion  at  Lake  Superior  is  this ; 
that  well-attended  convent  schools  exist  in  five  different 
places,  namely,  that  of  the  Ursulines  here  in  Marquette 
and  Ontonagan,  and  those  of  St.  Joseph  Sisters  at  Sault 
Ste.  Marie,  Hancock,  and  L'Anse.  The  last-named  Sis- 
ters have  the  advantage  of  instructing  also  boys  to  the  age 
of  twelve  vears.  The  introduction  of  Sisters  at  L'Anse 
contributed  much  towards  promoting  school  attendance  on 
the  part  of  the  Indian  children.  If  the  poor  missionary 
residing  there  succeeds  in  keeping  up  this  school  for  the 
mission,  the  greatest  blessings  are  to  be  hoped  therefrom. 
The  nimiber  of  Sisters  at  all  the  above-named  places  is 
about  twenty-five.  In  three  places  the  schools  are  sup- 
ported by  the  respective  congregation  itself.  For  the  Sis- 
ters at  poor  Sault  Ste.  Marie  I  have  to  contribute  annu- 
ally four  hundred  dollars.  In  addition  te  this  I  have  con- 
"^iderable  outlays  for  building  repairs.  The  three  Sisters 
at  L'Anse  receive  a  little  from  the  government;  the  other 
expenses  have  to  be  paid  by  the  poor  missionary,  who  is 
supported  by  me." 

In  his  letter  of  April  3,  1867,  he  writes:  "The 
state  of  rav  health  for  the  last  six  months  remains 
unchanged  unfortimately.  I  am  so  weak  that  I  can 
scarcely  speak  so  as  to  be  understood,  or  move.  I  rise 
every  morning  and  walk  from  time  to  time  up  and  down 
in  my  room  in  order  to  lie  easier  in  bed.     When  a  person 


!    I      !» 


P 


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I 

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! 

i 

i 
in  , If 

364 


RT.    REV.    FREDERIC    BARAOA. 


mm 


^■^> 


ni 


U  :[  it 


sees  or  honry  mo  ho  would  tiiink  that  I  could  scarcely  live 
a  week  longer.  Yet  I  continue  living  and  waiting  for  my 
successor,  who  is  to  come  this  summer. 

"For  the  last  four  months  I  have  been  unable  to  sav 
Mass ;  but  I  will  use  all  my  strength  to  read  Mass  on  Holy 
Thursday  and  consecrate  the  Holy  Oils. 

"As  to  my  diocese,  all  places  are  supplied  with  priests. 
There  are  now  twenty-one  priest.s  in  the  diocese,  and  only 
then  when  new  settlements  spring  up  will  there  be  need 
of  more  priests.  What  a  difference  between  the  present 
and  the  past,  when  the  holy  sacrifice  had  to  be  offered  up 
for  the  most  part  in  private  houses.  In  the  beginning  of 
the  diocese  there  y;ere  l>ut  two  priests  in  the  whole  dio- 
cese, now  there  are  twenty-one,  and  there  are  churches  in 
all  the  larger  settlements.  Only  in  case  new  mines  are 
discovered  (and  operated)  will  it  be  necessary  to  build 
more  churches.  Our  churches  are  built  at  the  expense  of 
the  respective  congregations,  nevertheless  the  bishop  has 
to  contribute  the  most  of  any.  We  are  well  supplied  with 
schools,  every  congregation  having  one,  which  is  kept 
either  by  Sisters  or  by  secular  teachers.  Moreover,  the 
missionaries  have  far  less  fatigues  and  hardships  to  endure 
than  foiTnerly,  when  the  few  priests  that  ere  here  had  to 
travel  large  distances  on  bad  roads.  N^ow  they  do  not  need 
to  travel  so  far;  the  roads  are  mostly  good  and  almost 
ever^'where  there  is  an  opportunity  to  travel  by  water  and 
land.    .    .    ." 

On  the  28th  of  June,  1867,  he  wrote  from  Marquette: 

"About  two  months  ago  I  wrote  last  and  spoke,  among 
other  things,  about  the  state  of  my  health.  I  mentioned 
that  I  needed  some  assistance,  especially  this  year,  because 
my  moving  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  my  former  episcopal 
see,  was  accompanied  with  many  expenses,  and  because 
here  in  Marquette  a  heavy  debt  remains  on  the  newly  built 
cathedral,  so  that  instead  of  drawing  a  revenue  from  it,  as 
most  bishops  do  from  theirs,  I  am  obliged  to  make  con- 


HIS   LA8T  PETITION    FOR   HELP. 


3G5 


siderublf  contributions  towards  paving  tlic  debts  and  i)ro- 
curing  such  things  as  are  yet  necessary.  .  .  .  Moreover, 
my  sickness  has  cost  mo  much  and  does  still  every  day. 
I  have  been  so  sick  for  nine  montiis  that  1  caii  neither 
read  ^[ass  nor  say  my  breviary,  nor  scarcely  speak,  through 
weakness. 

"The  priest  who  lias  charge  of  this  congregation  hibors 
hard,  especially  in  instructing  the  children.  Last  Sunday 
was  first  communion  of  the  children.  The  number  of  first 
communicants  was  about  fifty.  In  order  to  prepare  them 
well  for  so  holy  an  act,  the  missionary  not  only  instructed 
the  children  here — the  boys  and  girls  separately — but  also 
visited  once  every  week  three  settlements  five  miles  from 
here,  in  order  to  gather  together  and  instruct  the  children 
there.  At  the  same  time  he  had  evening  devotions  every 
evening  during  Lent,  at  which  he  preached  in  different 
languages.  Scarcely  were  the  Lenten  devotions  ended, 
when  he  had  May  devotions  and  also  daily  devotions  with 
sermon  during  the  Octave  of  Corpus  Christi. 

"The  church  we  have  here  is  the  most  beautiful  and 
the  largest  of  the  diocese ;  but  it  has  cost  much.  The  con- 
tract was  made  for  eight  thousand  dollars ;  but,  with  the 
stone  foundation,  which  was  not  included  in  the  contract, 
and  other  additions  and  improvements,  the  whole  amounts 
to  fourteen  thousand  dollars.  .  .  .  The  creditors  hold 
me  liable  (for  the  debt)  and  are  pressing  me  for  payment. 
I  am  thus  in  a  very  painful  situation  and  ask  most  urgently 
for  abundant  assistance.  This  petition  is  very  urgent,  for 
I  have  never  been  in  such  a  predicament  before.  Sick  as 
I  am,  and  to  be  continually  pressed  by  creditors,  whom  I 
am  imable  to  satisfy,  this  is  sad  indeed.  I  beg  of  you, 
therefore,  most  earnestly  to  help  me  in  my  need." 

The  same  touching  appeal  for  help  resounds  in 
Baraga's  last  letter  (written  for  him  by  Father  Jacker) 
of  July  26 : 

"Last  year  about  this  time  I  received  a  check  from  you 


i;  i| 


1      1 

'         \ 

■ 

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1 

1  ■ 

1           1 

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t 

1 

1 

i:    '  ■■■ 

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ii 

ii 
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ll-^Mi 

366 


ET.    REV.   FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


r'r^H' 


(the  Leopoldine  Society  directors)  through  Messrs. 
Brauns  &  Co.  This  year  I  have  as  yet  received  nothing 
from  Vienna.  I  entreat  you  most  urgently  not  to  abandon 
me  in  my  need.  I  was  never  so  much  in  need  of  help  as 
just  now.  My  sickness  of  ten  months,  of  which  I  still 
suffer,  and  my  old  debts,  which  I  cannot  pay,  mal^e  me 
truly  unhappy.  If  I  do  not  receive  help  this  year  from 
Vienna  I  do  not  know  how  it  will  2:0  with  me.  I  have 
still  to  govern  the  diocese ;  my  successor  will  not  come  this 
year.  He  who  was  recommended  primo  loco  has  declined. 
Hence  other  names  will  have  to  be  sent  to  Rome,  in  order 
that  the  Holy  Father  may  choose  among  them. 

"I  beg  of  you  once  more  very  urgently  not  to  abandon 
me  this  year." 

We  wall  give  here  the  particulars  of  the  death  and 
burial  of  B.  Baraga  as  we  have  them  from  the  pen  of 
Father  Jacker : 

"When  I  wrote  the  last  time  to  the  directors  of  the  Leo- 
poldine Society,  at  the  request  of  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Baraga, 
he  was  still  able  to  sign  the  letter  with  a  trembling  hand. 
JSTow  this  hand  rests  in  the  grave ! 

"The  long  sickness  of  the  beloved  prelate,  or  rather  the 
gradual  decline  of  his  vital  force,  which  began  to  manif c  st 
itself  verv  much  some  vears  aaro,  and  which  slowlv 
brought  him  nearer  and  nearer  to  his  blessed  end,  ended 
with  a  couple  of  weeks  of  great  pain.  Since  Xew  Year 
the  pious  sufferer  spent  most  of  his  nights  sleepless.  In 
the  night  before  Epiphany  severe  pains  and  difficulty  of 
breathing  came  upon  him,  so  that  it  was  considered  neces- 
sary to  administer  to  him  the  Sacraments  of  the  dying. 
This  condition  lasted  several  days.  An  apparent  im- 
provement of  health  followed,  but  it  was  only  the  forerun- 
ner of  the  gradual  extinguishing  of  the  vital  force.  Still 
the  dying  bishop  retained  the  use  of  his  mental  faculties 
to  his  last  moments,  and  even  when  his  tongue  was  un- 
able to  articulate,  he  tried  to  make  known  his  wishes  and 


HE   BREATHES   HIS    LAST. 


367 


Year 
In 
ty  of 
Heces- 
ying. 
im- 
enm- 
Still 
ulties 
s  inl- 
and 


orders  partly  by  writing,  partly  by  signs,  in  which  he  suc- 
ceeded in  most  instances,  though  only  after  great  efforts. 

"At  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  19th  of  January, 
1868,  on  which  day  the  feast  of  the  Holy  Name  of  Jesus 
fell  in  that  year,  he  exhaled  his  pure  soul  after  an  agony  of 
only  a  few  moments. 

"The  cold  season  of  the  year  made  it  possible  to  post- 
pone his  solemn  obsequies  so  long  that  at  least  some  priests 
of  the  diocese  were  able  to  arrive  in  ti'x  3  to  attend.  On 
the  31st  of  January  we  buried  our  good  Father  in  a  vault 
constructed  for  that  purpose  in  the  basement  of  the  cathe- 
dral. Only  six  priests  were  present.  But  the  large 
church  could  not  hold  the  crowds  of  people  of  Marquette 
and  the  surrounding  country.  Not  only  Catholics  of  dif- 
ferent nationalities  were  present,  but  also  the  majority  of 
the  Protestant  population,  who  by  common  agreement 
stopped  all  works  on  that  day  and  vied  with  the  flock  of 
the  deceased  bishop  in  manifesting  their  appreciation  of 
his  great  virtues  and  merits.* 

"Thus  ended  a  man  whose  purity  of  soul  and  single- 
ness of  purpose,  whose  mortified  life  and  burning  zeal, 
joined  to  uncommon  talents  and  acquirements,  faithfully 
and  successfully  employed  in  the  service  of  God  and  of  the 
most  abandoned  of  his  creatures;  a  man  whose  extraor- 
dinary achievements  as  a  pioneer  of  Christianity  will  not 
allow  his  memory  to  pass  away  as  long  as  souls  capable  of 
appreciating  so  much  virtue  and  excellence  will  live  in 
this  upper  country,  wdiich  has  been  the  principal  field  of 
his  labors,  and  where  his  body  now  rests  to  await  ^lie  sum- 
mons for  resurrection." 

The  following  inscription  is  engraved  on  the  slab 
enclosing  his  grave : 


*The  following  Fathers  attended  Bishop  Baraga's  funeral? 
Jacker,  Terhorst,  Bourion,  Duroc,  Burns,  and  Vertin,  now  bishop  oi 
Marquette. 


ii 


?l    !■ 


I! 
!i 


a 


368 


RT.    REV.   FREDERIC  BARAGA. 


I.  H.  S. 


,  1  ' 
,  1 1- 
■  I  '■ 


Hie  Jacet  Corpus  111  ac  Revd 

Friderici  Baraga  D.  D.  Ottawa  et 
Chippewa  Indianorum  Apostoli  1 
Episcopi  Marianopolitani  et  Marquettensis. 
Natus  die  29       Junii,  1797,  in 
Carniolia,  Austria.    Ordinatus  Presbyter 
Labaci  die  21        7  1823,  Consecratus 

Episcopus  die  1        9  1853  j  Obiit  die 

19        Jannarii,  1868. 

R.  I.  P. 


If*. 
i! 

V 


>■<  ■  ■ 


CIIAPTEH  LIX. 

SHORT  RESUME  OF  THE  LIFE  AND  LABORS  OF  BISHOP 
BARAGA  ;  HIS  MANY  VIRTUES  AND  ACCOMPLISH- 
MENTS ;  A  MODEL  STUDENT^  PRIEST, 
INDIAN  MISSIONARY,  AND 
BISHOP. 

In  the  preceding  pages  we  have  endeavored  to  give  a 
faithful,  reliable  account  of  the  life  and  labors  of  saintlv 
Bishop  Baraga.  AVe  are  informed  by  Bishop  Vertin,  of 
Marquette,  a  countryman  of  Baraga  and  the  last  ordained 
by  him,  that  the  inhabitants  of  Dobernik,  B.  Baraga's  na- 
tive place,  intend  to  erect  a  monument  this  year,  the  cen- 
tenarv  of  his  birth,  to  their  distinguished  countrvman  in 
the  parish  church,  where  he  was  baptized  just  one  hundred 
years  ago.  We  hope  that  this  little  work  of  ours  will  also 
serve  as  a  centenary  monument  to  this  saintly  missionary 
and  bishop  of  the  Northwest,  a  monument  which  will  help 
to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  his  noble  deeds  and  great  vir- 
tues unto  future  generations. 

B.  Baraga  had  the  unspeakable  blessing  of  having  had 


pious. 


God-fearing, 


thoroughly  Catholic  parents.  Al- 
though he  lost  them  at  an  early  age,  his  mother  dying  when 
he  was  scarcely  eleven  years  old,  and  his  father  four  years 
later,  still  the  lessons  of  piety,  charity  and  other  virtues 
thev  had  taught  him  never  became  effaced  from  his  mind. 
At  the  University  of  Vienna  and  at  the  gj'innasium 
and  seminary  of  Laibach  he  was  a  model  student,  diligent, 
conscientious,  faithful,  and  persevering.  He  was  gifted 
with  extraordinary  talents,  had  a  clear,  logical  mind,  re- 
markable memory  and  great  love  for  linguistic  studies. 


i; 

f 

! 

\ 

• 

i 

f 

j 

! 

■ 

j!  ■ 

i 


370 


RT.  r.EV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


:r'' 


His  progress  in  all  branches  of  study  was  astonishing.  At 
the  same  time  he  was  a  pure-minded,  innocent,  God-fear- 
ing youth,  of  whom  we  are  morally  certain  that  he  retained 
the  white  garment  of  Baptismal  innocence  untaniislied  by 
any  mortal  sin  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

As  priest  in  Europe  we  find  him  a  model  of  all  sacer- 
dotal virtues,  laboring  with  all  the  zeal  and  energy  of  a 
true  pastor  of  souls  for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  his  people. 
He  never  knew  what  it  was  to  be  idle,  lukewarm,  or  care- 
less in  the  service  of  his  divine  Master.  Old  and  young, 
sinners  and  just,  all  felt  the  effect  of  his  burning  zeal  for 
the  salvation  of  souls,  all  were  attracted  by  his  soul-stirring 
discourses  and  instructions,  by  his  kind,  sympathetic,  win- 
ning ways  to  God  and  the  practice  of  religion  and  virtue. 
Even  at  this  early  stage  of  his  sacerdotal  career  we  find 
him  composing  works  of  devotion  and  instiiiction  for  his 
Slavonian  countrymen,  which  even  to  this  day  have  re- 
tained their  hold  on  the  popular  mind  and  heart. 

As  Indian  missionarv  he  was  second  to  none  in  self- 
sacrificing  labor  and  success  as  converter  of  Indians.  He 
justly  deserves  to  be  called  "The  Indian  Apostle  of  the 
^N^orthwest."  His  converts  are  numbered  by  the  thou- 
sands, not  to  speak  of  innumerable  sinners,  whom  he  won 
to  God  by  his  instructions  in  the  pulpit  and  confessional, 
and  by  his  books  of  piety.  Only  on  the  great  day  of  judg- 
ment will  all  the  good  be  known  which  he  effected  during 
his  long  and  fruitful  priestly  and  episcopal  career. 

As  bishop  we  find  him  indefatigable  in  promoting  the 
cause  of  religion  and  virtue  in  the  extensive  territory  com- 
mitted to  his  care,  which  for  many  years  embraced  not  only 
the  Upper  Peninsula  of  ]\Iicliigan,  but  also  a  great  part  of 
Lower  Michigan,  northern  Wisconsin,  eastern  Minnesota, 
and  parts  of  Ontario.  Everv  vear  he  visited  almost  all 
the  missionary  stations  and  congregations  of  this  extensive 
territory,  often  suffering  untold  hardships  and  miseries, 
traveling  in  winter  on  snowshoes,  sleeping  under  the  open 


OF  A   FORGIVINa   SPIRIT. 


371 


win- 


won 


.o>- 


air  or  in  some  wretched  Indian  wigwam,  shivering  with 
cold,  living  on  a  little  bread,  cheese  and  tea.  He  7iever 
used  stimulants  of  any  kind,  although  often  in  sad  need  of 
them  when  exhausted  by  cold  and  long  walks.  He  was  a 
teetotaler  of  the  strictest  kind  and  preached  temperance, 
teetotalism  in  his  Indian  works  of  instruction,  knowing 
but  too  well  that  liquor  is  the  Indian's  greatest  enemy. 

B.  Baraga  was  deeply  humble.  Of  this  we  have  abund- 
ant proofs  in  his  life  as  described  by  us  and  in  the  unani- 
mous testimony  of  all  who  were  personally  acquainted  with 
him.  'Not  long  ago,  we  heard  from  ^Ir.  Charles  Belle  Isle, 
a  venerable  octogenarian  of  Bellil  Falls,  Wis.,  the  follow- 
ing touching  incident,  of  which  he  himself  was  an  eye  wit- 
ness. One  day  he  and  Mr.  Charpentier,  father  of  Alexie 
Charpentier,  of  Odanah,  Wis.,  were  walking  in  the  streets 
of  La  Pointe  with  Father  Baraga.  This  was  in  1841. 
They  met  a  pagan  Indian,  most  probably  accompanied  by 
others  of  the  same  stamp.  Without  the  least  provocation, 
this  man  went  up  to  Father  Baraga  and  spat  in  his  face. 
He  then  walked  away,  laughing  derisively.  Charpentier, 
fired  with  indignation  at  the  insult  offered  to  his  beloved 
pastor,  raised  his  hand  to  strike  the  impudent  wretch  and 
give  him  a  well-merited  beating;  but  Father  Baraga  re- 
strained him,  quietly  saying:  "Let  him  be;  he  don't 
know  any  better !"  We  are  here  forcibly  reminded  of  the 
words  of  Jesus  on  the  cross:  "Father,  forgive  them,  for 
they  know  not  what  they  do."  This  Indian  must  have 
been  one  of  the  very  worst  sort,  a  fanatical  pagan ;  for,  as 
a  rule,  all  Indians,  even  pagans,  respect  the  Catholic 
priest.  We  would,  therefore,  not  believe  what  was  related 
to  us  were  it  not  vouched  for  by  Mr.  Belle  Isle,  who  was 
an  eye  witness  of  the  deed. 


1 

il 

1 

i^^B 

n 


hi 


i    ■ 


i 


^^H 


-w 


372 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


^ 


if 


m 


Ml 


ti': 


in'i  ti  ■ 


l»l 


Another  proof  of  B.  Baraga's  great  liniiiility  is  found 
in  the  following  letter  of  his  to  Father  J  acker : 

'\Sault  Ste.  Marie,  Mich.,  May  16,  1863. 
"Bev.  and  Most  Beloved  Father  Jacher: 

"Your  most  valuable  letter  of  the  11th  and  12th  inst., 
in  reply  to  my  five  letters,  I  have  just  now  received.  My 
much  beloved  Son  in  Christ,  you  are  my  greatest,  almost 
my  only,  consolation  in  my  multifarious  sorrows  and 
humiliations.  Especially  do  I  rejoice  in  the  innermost  of 
my  heart  at  the  heroic  word,  which  I  find  today  in  your 
letter :  'Should  1  not  live  to  see  the  time'  (when,  namely, 
your  place  can  be  supplied  with  other  good  priests)  'I  must 
be  satisfied  even  then.'  Yes,  truly,  be  perfectly  satisfied 
with  the  arrangements  of  your  bishop,  which  you  can  re- 
ceive with  all  certainty  as  God's  doings  and  you  will  work 
out  your  etenial  salvation  with  the  greatest  certainty. 

"Now  I  leave  all  to  you ;  do  as  you  like ;  you  have  my 
approbation  and  my  weak  blessing  upon  all  (you  may  do). 
O,  that  I  were  a  saint  in  order  to  give  you  a  powerful  bless- 
ing !  I  have  never  felt  so  much  as  now  my  poorness,  unfit- 
ness, and  insufficiency.  However,  I  thank  God  for  all 
these  humiliations  which  He  permits  to  befall  me. 
'Bonum  mihi,  Domine,  quia  humiliasti  me !' 

"It  "will  please  me  exceedingly,  dear  Father  Jacker, 
to  see  you  here ;  but  come  soon,  for  later  on  I  must  go  to 
Cincinnati  to  have  some  Indian  books  printed,  of  which 
there  is  everywhere  a  very  great  want.    .    .    . 
"Your  loving  Father  in  Christ, 

"-I-FEEDERIC, 

"Bishop." 

iSTo  wonder  that  a  man  so  humble  and  so  deeply  con- 
vincv^d  of  his  w^eakness  should  feel  so  merciful  and  patient 
towards  others,  especially  to  poor  sinners.  His  heart  was 
like  the  Heart  of  Jesus,  full  of  compassion  for  the  weak 


HIS  AIM   TO  SAVE  SOULS. 


373 


and  fallen.     Witness  his  instructions  to  F.  Jacker  in  re- 
gard to  some  unhappy  members  of  his  flock: 

''Treat  old  ^I.  as  strictly  ms  possible,  but  to  expel  him 
from  the  mission  village  would  mean  to  deliver  him  to  cer- 
tain eternal  ruin.  Be  glad  in  heart  if  he  is  willing  to  re- 
main in  the  mission  village,  where  a  person  can  speak  to 
him  exliortingly  from  time  to  time." 

Again :  '"In  the  meanwhile  I  advise  you,  in  general, 
not  readily,  or  never,  to  employ  the  means  of  expulsion 
from  the  church.  On  the  contrary,  one  should  invite  just 
those,  who  live  sinfully,  to  be  sure  to  come  always  to 
church,  when  they  are  in  the  village,  that  they  may  hear 
religious  instruction  and  be  brought  to  a  change  of  heart. 
Treat  sinners  with  meekness  (but  not  with  laxity  in  con- 
fession). Thereby  you  will  accomplish  more  than  with 
do^^^l-C0 sting  banishment  of  the  sinner.  Yes,  for  the  lion 
it  may  do  to  throw  down  and  destroy  all  that  is  before  him. 
K^ot  so  for  the  pastor  under  the  good  Upper-pastor,  who 
went  kindly  after  the  lost  sheep  and  did  not  cast  it  off." 

As  to  B.  Baraga's  love  of  prayer  and  meditation  we 
have  spoken  of  it  repeatedly  in  the  foregoing  pages.  He 
was  preeminently  a  man  of  prayer,  spending  every  morn- 
ing two  or  three  hours  in  that  holy  exercise,  and  who  rose 
lono'  before  davbreak  to  devote  the  silent  hours  of  the 
earlv  mornina;  to  communion  with  God.  Even  when  walk- 
ing  all  day  through  snow,  ice,  and  cold,  he  would  say  his 
breviary  before  daylight  and  again  after  dark,  by  the  light 
of  a  camp  firo,  though  shivering  with  cold. 

He  was  grave  and  dignified  in  his  whole  exterior,  as 
all  acquainted  with  him  testify;  the  very  picture  of  a  re- 
fined, dignified,  Christian  gentleman.  He  was  unobstru- 
sive,  kind,  sympathetic  and  gentlemanly  in  his  whole  de- 
portment and  bearing.  Although  a  man  of  vast  learning 
and  keen  observation,  he  never  paraded  his  knowledge  in 
company  or  sought  public  applause.  He  loved  to  conduct 
divine  service  with  all  po.ssible  decorum  and  solemnity  as 


i 


1   I 


0 


,ii  i 


i 

i 


•- '  n 


374 


RT.  REV.  FREDERIC   BARAGA. 


\V^ 


.;    (,    . 


-   ii 


li:i\n):      f 


it  justly  deserves  and  in  order  to  make  a  salutai-y  impres- 
sion on  the  people. 

He  was  very  active,  being  always  busy  with  some  use- 
ful occupation.  This  is  evidenced  by  his  multitudinous 
correspondence  and  his  literary  works.  His  life  might 
justly  be  described  as  sanctity  in  action. 

He  w^as  highly  mortified,  never  using  stimulants  or 
liquor  of  any  kind,  seldom,  if  ever,  partaking  of  meat,  and 
living  on  poor,  plain  food,  bread,  cheese,  tea  and  the  like. 
He  was  unmindful  of  ease  and  comfort  and  satisfied  with 
poor  lodging  and  food. 

But  it  may  be  asked,  Did  not  Bishop  Baraga  have  any 
failings  whatever  ?  We  answer,  He  had  one ;  but  that  was 
rather  a  failing  of  the  head  than  of  the  heart.  It  had  its 
origin  in  his  zeal  and  noble-heartedness.  A  close  study  of 
his  dmrj  or  journal,  which  he  kept  for  ten  years  of  his 
episcopal  life,  shows  that  at  times  he  acted  rather  hastily 
in  ordaining,  respectively,  receiving  priests  into  his  diocese. 
Facts  and  names  might  be  given,  but  it  is  unnecessary. 
Those  very  mistakes,  however,  are  an  evidence  of  his  pas- 
toral zeal,  solicitude,  and  noble-heartedness.  As  the  mines 
in  Upper  Michigan  were  rapidly  being  opened  and  worked, 
a  strong  tide  of  Catholic  immigration  set  in,  and  in  a  few 
years  there  were  thousands  of  Catholics,  where,  before, 
there  had  been  but  few.  To  provide  his  people  with  good 
priests  was  his  great  endeavor.  For  that  reason  he  went 
to  Europe  shortly  after  his  consecration;  but  of  the  five 
priests  he  brought  along,  perhaps  not  a  single  one  remained 
long  in  his  diocese.  One  of  them.  Father  Lautischar, 
came  in  1854,  and  left  in  1858  for  the  Indian  missions  of 
Minnesota.  Of  the  other  four,  one  became  a  Redemptorist 
and  one,  it  seems,  apostatized.  What  became  of  the  other 
two  is  not  known  to  the  writer. 

As  B.  Baraga  needed  priests  very  urgently  for  the 
rapidly  increasing  population  of  his  diocese,  he  gladly  re- 
ceived priests,  and  ordained  candidates  for  the  priesthood 


HIS   MEMORY   HELD   IN   BENEDICTION. 


375 


without  being  sometimes  sufficiently  acquainted  with  them 
and  their  fitness  for  the  pastoral  charge.  He  meant  well 
and  always  tried  to  do  what  was  right,  but  at  times  his 
eagerness  to  provide  for  the  spiritual  wants  of  his  people 
caused  him  to  act  rather  precipitately.  It  was  a  mistake 
of  the  head,  not  of  the  heart;  a  lack  of  judgment  and  dis- 
cretion. Such  mistakes  may  and  do  happen  to  the  holiest 
and  best  of  men,  for  ''to  err  is  human." 

Moreover,  his  noble-hearted  disposition  made  him 
naturally  inclined  to  fonn  a  good  opinion  of  those  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact.  Hence  it  is  not  to  be  wondered 
at  that  sometimes  he  was  cruelly  deceived.  This  explains 
his  occasional  attacks  of  great  sadness.  Being  imbued 
with  a  deep  sense  of  his  awful  responsibility  as  bishop  of 
a  large  diocese,  and  noticing  the  unpriestly  conduct  of  one 
or  another  of  his  clergy,  he  felt  keenly  the  great  injury 
that  such  were  doing  to  the  cause  of  religion,  and  saw  his 
own  mistake  in  receiving  or  ordaining  them.  Hence  his 
lamentable  complaint:  "Would  that  I  could  be  an  Indian 
missionary  again !  I  would  far  sooner  be  an  Indian  mis- 
sionary than  a  bishop."  Hence  the  occasional  remarks  in 
his  journal  that  he  would  like  to  resign,  if  he  but  knew  that 
such  was  the  wall  of  God. 

We  are  of  the  deepest  conviction  that  Bishop  Baraga 
was  a  man  of  uncommon  holiness  of  life.  His  very  short- 
cominp:s  show  that,  although  human  and  therefore  liable 
to  err,  he  was  a  most  zealous  pastor  of  souls,  noble-hearted, 
but  at  times  too  confiding.  If  they  are  faults,  they  are 
those  of  a  noble  man  and  saint. 

Bishop  Baraga  was  a  man  of  God,  a  priest  according 
to  the  Heart  of  Jesus,  a  bishop  of  Apostolic  virtue,  a  man 
full  oi  the  purest  and  strongest  love  of  God  and  his  neigh- 
bor. He  lived  but  for  one  object,  and  tliat  was  to  make 
God  known  and  loved  and  served  by  all  men  as  far  as  it 
could  be  effected  by  his  influence  and  example.  He  de- 
serves a  foremost  place  in  the  ranks  of  our  deceased  pre- 


I 

I' 

I.i  jfl-', 


r 

i, 

376 


RT.  BEV.  FBEDERIC   BARAGA. 


III 


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Mki^i.  . 

latoH.  His  moniory  is  held  in  benediction  by  the  [)eople 
of  the  Xoi'thwest,  especiallv  by  those  wlio  had  the  happi- 
ness to  be  acquainted  with  liini.  This  was  shown  particu- 
larly at  his  funeral,  at  which  Protestants  and  Catholics 
vied  with  each  other  to  show  their  respect,  love  and  venera- 
tion for  him.  Michigan  has  perpetuated  his  memory  by 
naming-  a  county,  town,  and  postofHce  after  him. 

In  the  foregoing  pages  we  have  given  but  a  mere  out- 
line of  his  life  and  deeds.  Who  can  tell  his  maiiv  acts  of 
charity  and  kindness  to  the  poor  and  suffering^  Who  can 
relate  the  numberless  hardships  and  miseries  he  endured 
in  endeavoring  to  bring  the  light  of  faith  to  so  many  poor, 
desi)ised,  abandoned  creatures,  the  pagan  Indians  of  the 
Northwest,  in  order  to  save  their  innnortal  souls  ?  Only 
on  the  day  of  judgment,  when  all  things  shall  be  brought 
to  light,  will  it  be  knoA\'Ti  what  this  saintly  man  did  and 
suffered  for  the  love  of  God  and  ihe  salvation  of  souls. 

Let  us  hope  that  the  day  will  come  when  his  name  will 
be  enrolled  in  the  catalog-ue  of  the  Saints.  Reports  of 
wonderful  cures  circulate  among  the  people.  It  is  desir- 
able that  those  upon  whom  such  cures  have  been  wrought, 
or  who  have  certain  knowledge  of  them,  report  the  same 
to  the  proper  ecclesiastical  authority  for  investigation  as 
to  their  truth  and  supernatural  character. 

We  shall  now  give  two  such  accounts  as  we  have  them 
from  the  lips  of  Ven.  ]\rotlier  Julia,  of  the  Mother  House 
of  St.  Joseph's  Sisters  in  Carondelet,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

A  man  working  in  the  mine?  injured  his  knee  so  badly 
that  it  was  thought  his  leg  Avould  have  to  be  amputated. 
A  priest  told  him  to  apply  to  his  sore  knee  a  piece  of  the 
candle  which  B.  Baraga  had  held  in  his  hand  when  dying, 
and  to  invoke  him  with  great  confidence,  as  he  had  always 
been  so  good  and  kind  to  the  sick.  The  man  did  so  and 
tied  the  piece  of  candle  to  his  bandaged  knee.  The  next 
day  lie  was  perfectly  well. 

A  certain  Mrs.  W.  had  a  dairy  farm  between  Marquette 


PEACE   TO   HIS   ASHES. 


377 


by 


dlv 
ed. 
the 

av8 

t.' 

md 
ext 


and  Negaunoo.  For  a  long  time  this  woman  had  suffered 
from  sore  knee.^;  the  evil  seemed  ineiiruble.  One  day  she 
went  to  li.  Baraga  and  asked  the  person  who  was  doin<j:  the 
hous-ework  to  let  her  have  his  old  stoekings.  The  latter 
told  ^Irs.  W.  that  she  eonld  not  give  them  without  his  per- 
mission. So  she  went  to  the  bishop  and  told  him  about 
the  woman's  request.  *'Let  her  have  the  stockings,"  said 
the  sick  bishop.  The  afflicted  wonuui  put  on  the  bishop's 
stockings  and  her  ailment  left  her.  About  ten  years  after 
this  occurrence,  long  after  B.  Baraga's  death,  some  one 
stole  from  her,  it  seems,  at  night,  a  certain  quantity  of  but- 
ter, which  she  had  intended  to  sell  in  Marquette.  In  her 
anger  and  excitement  she  went  to  a  fortune  teller  to  ascer- 
tain from  her  who  it  was  that  had  stolen  her  butter.  No 
sooner  had  she  done  so  than  her  old  ailment  returned  as  a 
just  punishment  for  her  sin. 

With  this  we  finish  our  life  of  saintly  Bishop  Baraga. 
May  the  many  examples  of  virtue,  which  occur  so  abund- 
antly in  his  holy  and  self-sacrificing  life,  animate  us  all  to 
walk  in  his  footsteps  and  to  serve  God  in  singleness  of 
heart  and  purity  of  intention  in  that  state  of  life  in  which 
Div^'ne  Providence  has  placed  us. 

To  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  we  unreservedly  submit 
all  and  everything  written  on  these  pages,  declaring  that 
in  applying  the  words,  holy  and  saint,  to  Bishop  Baraga, 
we  do  not  wish  to  forestall  any  decision  of  the  Church  in 
this  matter,  nor  do  we  ascribe  anv  but  human  credence  to 
any  of  the  wonderful  facts  and  cures  narrated  above. 

FINIS. 


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REV.  FRANCIS  X.  PIERZ. 


'jJlfelC- 


Short  Biographical  Sketches 

OF  MISSIONARIES  WHO  HAVE  LABORED 

AMONGST  THE  INDIANS  OF 

THE  NORTHWEST. 


REV.  rRA:N^CIS  PIERZ. 

Rev.  Francis  Pierz  (Slov.  Pirec)  was  born  near  Karn- 
nik,  Camiola,  Austria,  of  Slavonian  parents,  on  the  21st 
of  November,  A.  D.  1785.  Little  is  known  of  his  early 
years.  He  attended  the  town  school  of  Kamnik  conducted 
by  Franciscans.  After  having  attended  school  there  for 
two  or  three  years,  he  went  to  Laibach  and  entered  the 
Gymnasium.  Here  he  devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  his 
native  tongue  and  French,  besides  the  other  branches  of 
learning  taught  at  said  celebrated  seat  of  learning.  At 
the  end  of  his  classical  course  he  graduated  with  special 
honors  and  entered  the  ecclesiastical  seminary  of  Laibach, 
in  which  his  celebrated  countrvmen  and  fellow  laborers 
in  the  Indian  'missi'^riary  field,  Rt.  Rev.  Fr.  Baraga  and 
Rt.  Rev.  Ig.  Mrak,  made  their  studies.  By  earnest  study 
and  fervent  prayer  Pierz  prepared  himself  for  the  sublime 
dignity  of  the  priesthood.  Knowing  the  great  utility  of 
linguistic  knowledge,  he  studied  a  great  number  of  Euro- 
pean languages,  becoming  very  proficient  in  all  of  them. 
It  is  a  notable  fact  that  Slavonians  and  Poles,  as  a  rule, 
possess  linguistic  talent  in  a  remarkable  degree. 

In  1813  he  w^as  ordained  by  Bishop  Kovacic  and  that 
same  year  assigned  to  the  parish  of  Kranjska  Gora  as 
assistant  priest.    In  this  place  he  labored  for  seven  years, 


:^N^ 


380 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


at  the  end  of  which  time  he  was  made  parish  priest  of 
Pecah,  where  he  labored  zealously  and  with  much  fruit  for 
ten  years. 

Father  Pierz  took  great  interest  in  promoting  not  only 
the  sjDiritual,  but  rlso  the  temporal  well-being  of  his  poor 
but  pious  people,  who  were  mostly  farmers.  He  was  a 
great  expert  in  gardening.  Whereyer  he  was  stationed  he 
cultiyated  a  large  garden  full  of  the  choicest  yegetables, 
flowers,  and  fruits.  He  also  published  a  work  in  Slavo- 
nian, entitled,  "Kranjski  Votnar,"  in  which  he  explains 
the  best  method  of  successful  gardening. 

From  Pecah  he  was  removed  to  Podbrezje,  where  he 
labored  most  zealously  for  five  years.  Here  he  published 
two  additional  works  on  gardening.  It  was  while  here 
that  the  thought  occurred  to  him  of  going  to  the  Indian 
country.  I'liis  resolution  was  awakened,  or  at  least 
.strengthened,  in  him  bv  a  letter  he  received  about  this  time 
from  his  zealous  and  beloved  countryman,  Father  Baraga, 
Avho  was  then  stationed  at  St.  Claire,  Mich.  Father  Pierz 
was  told,  in  words  dictated  by  burning  zeai,  all  the  good 
he  could  accomplish  in  the  wilderness  of  America,  and 
how  few  there  were  to  labor  in  that  part  of  the  Lord's  vine- 
yard. Baraga's  words  met  with  a  sympathetic  response 
on  the  part  of  his  countryman.  F.  Pierz  at  once  resigned 
his  parish  in  order  to  devote  the  remainder  of  his  days  to 
the  salvation  of  the  poor,  abandoned  Indians. 

Although  fifty  years  of  age,  he  set  out  on  his  journey 
to  Vienna  on  the  lOth  of  June,  1835.  Thence  he  went  to 
Havre  de  Grace,  France,  whence  he  took  ship  to  America, 
and  on  the  18th  of  September  of  the  above  named  year,  he 
arrived  at  Detroit,  where  he  was  most  cordially  received 

7  I' 

by  Bishop  Bese.  Being  endowed  with  a  poetic  vein,  F. 
Pierz  c<nnposed  a  poem  describing  the  many  incidents  of 
his  lono-  vovaii'e  on  land  and  sea.  Describini^r  his  iirst  in.- 
pressions  and  cx[)erience  as  Indian  missionary,  he  wrote 
as  follows : 


REV.  FRANCIS   PIERZ. 


881 


ica, 


"On  the  leth  of  June  (1835)  I  left  my  dear  country, 
Carniola  (Krain).  After  many  dangers  and  sufferings  I 
arrived,  well-preserved  and  happy,  in  Detroit.  The  bishop 
received  me  in  a  fatherly  manner.  He  told  me  to  go  to 
Lake  Superior  in  order  to  act  as  assistant  to  Baraga  in  the 
place  where  that  indefatigable  missionary  is  stationed. 
The  place  was  full  of  Indians.  The  season  being  too  far 
advanced,  and  no  traveling  being  done  on  the  lake  (Supe- 
rior), I  was  obliged  to  stay  at  La  Croix  (Crosse  Vil- 
lage), where  I  have  been  working  in  the  vineyard  of  the 
Lord  for  the  last  four  months."' 

As  we  leara  from  a  letter  of  Baraga,  written  about  this 
time,  F.  Pierz  was  intended  for  ^agadjiwanang  (Fond  du 
Lac,  Minn.).  At  a  later  period  he  visited  that  Indian  mis- 
sion and  even  began  the  erection  of  a  church  there,  which, 
however,  was  never  completed. 

F.  Pierz  continues:  ''I  soon  became  av^are  of  the 
truth  of  all  that  had  been  written  about  this  diocese  (De- 
troit). x\ll  the  priests  I  have  met  so  far  are  real  treasures 
of  the  holy  church.  This  is  especially  true  of  F.  Baraga, 
whom  all,  without  exception,  esteem  most  highly.  These 
missionaries  live  in  poverty,  as  the  Apostles  also  did  in  the 
beginning  of  Christianity.  The  mission  churches  are  built 
of  logs;  they  are  very  plain,  but  neat.  You  can  see  in  them 
only  a  poor  altar,  but  pious  Christians;  only  candlesticks 
of  wood,  but  priests  of  gold.  Nowhere  in  these  churches 
can  you  notice  outward  ornaments  or  treasures,  but  ex- 
emplary Christianity,  the  spirit  of  the  first  Christians 
manifested  in  the  manners  and  piety  of  the  people. 

"In  La  Croix  I  found  about  two  hundred  Catholics. 
With  God's  help  I  soon  increased  this  number,  through  the 
conversion  of  Indian  pagans.  I  hope  to  increase  it  so 
much  in  a  short  time  that  this  place  will  become  a  mission- 
ary station.  All  the  converts  gained  through  the  fruitful 
labors  of  oi^r  illustrious  Dejean,  Baraga,  and  Senderl  still 
live  in  their  baptismal  innocence.    They  were  exceedingly 


382 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKBTCHES. 


i;i 


a 


glad  to  see  nie  as  their  missionary  and  this  the  more  so  as 
they  are  but  seldom  visited  by  a  priest.  They  were  not 
idle,  but  made  the  best  possible  use  of  my  visit  to  them. 

"On  the  first  Sunday  of  Advent  I  blessed  their  new 
little  church.  I  preached  in  French  and  was  in  the  con- 
fessional every  day.  Their  pious  eagerness  for  hearing 
the  word  of  God  and  receiving  the  sacraments  is  untiring. 
Their  esteem  for  the  church,  for  their  holv  faith  and  its 
priests  is  beyond  expression.  I  often  admire  their  humil- 
ity, purity,  and  love  of  their  neighbor.  They  evince  laud- 
able eagerness  for  acquiring  social  customs  and  civiliza- 
tion. [Many  of  my  (Indian)  pupils  learned  to  read  their 
Indian  prayer  book  in  four  months.  They  all  show  great 
joy  in  attending  divine  service  and  they  go  to  Mass  regu- 
larly, even  those  who  live  far  away  from  church.  Mothers 
bring  their  little  ones  to  be  blessed.  It  is  a  great  pleasure 
to  live  and  labor  among  such  Christians  and  a  great  joy 
to  preach  the  Gospel  to  such  hearers.  The  blessing  of  God 
is  evidently  to  be  seen.  Tears  of  joy  come  to  my  eyes  when 
at  the  daily  Mass  I  give  the  Bread  of  the  Angels  to  these 
devout  Christians,  or  when,  during  instruction,  I  read  in 
their  red  faces  what  the  divine  merely  is  operating  in  their 
innocent  hearts ;  above  all,  when  through  the  Sacrament  of 
Baptism  I  bring  many  a  poor,  lost  sheep  to  the  fold  of 
Christ,  and  when  I  perceive  how  the  kingdom  of  God  is 
gaining  ground  amongst  these  inhabitants  of  the  forest. 

"Palm  Sunday  and  Easter  Sunday  were  days  of  great 
joy.  I  explained  to  them  the  blessing  of  the  palms  and 
what  it  meant.  They  all  came  to  church  with  evergreen 
boughs  of  cedar,  singing  the  antiphon :  "Hosanna  to  the 
Son  of  David !"  I  thought  tliese  branches  were  indeed  a 
most  becoming  sign  of  heartfelt  piety,  which  alone  is  dear 
to  the  Lord. 

"On  Easter  Sunday  I  wished  to  blesa,  as  is  customary, 
meat,  bread,  and  other  eatables,  that  they  might  have  a 
joyful  meal  after  so  long  a  fast.    They  answered  that  they 


REV.  FRANCIS   PIERZ. 


383 


of 
is 


Lear 


could  not  fulfill  my  wish,  as  they  had  neither  meat  nor 
bread,  but  only  some  potatoes  and  corn  and  a  few  fishes. 
*But  we  wish/  they  said,  'to  receive  the  True  Lamb  of  God 
and  enjoy  so  much  the  more  the  Food  of  the  soul/  In  fact, 
on  Easter  Sunday  nearly  all  received  their  Redeemer. 
The  hopeful  young  men  sang  very  beautifully  during  di- 
vine service.  Those  who  had  not  received  Holy  Com- 
munion on  Easter  Sunday,  did  so  on  Easter  Monday. 
Thus  I  live  among  the  red-colored  people  very  much  sat- 
isfied. Indeed,  I  often  enjoy  more  heartfelt  pleasure  and 
consolation  than  in  all  my  twenty  years'  work  in  the  old 
country. 

*'For  this  reason  I  praise  Divine  Providence  and  thank 
God  that  in  His  holy  and  fatherly  keeping  he  brought  me 
to  the  New  World.  I  am  often  fatigued  when  performing 
the  many  onerous  duties  which  are  necessarily  connected 
with  my  labors,  still  I  am  perfectly  well  and  highly  satis- 
fied in  this  flourishing  mission.  I  can  exhibit  it  as  a  living 
example  (of  true  Christianity)  to  my  countrymen  and 
other  Christians  in  Europe.  Indeed,  at  the  last  judgment, 
these  children  of  the  wilderness  will  put  to  shame  many 
Christians  who  are  tired  of  the  teachings  and  consolations 
of  our  holy  Church.  On  that  accoiuit  they  neglect  the  su- 
pernatural helps  of  religion  and  desire  only  such  things 
as  satisfy  their  natural  inclinations.  They  desecrate  with 
gluttony,  intemperance,  and  very  often  with  impure  pleas- 
ures, those  holy  days  which  remind  us  of  the  great 
mysteries." 

"^  By  the  end  of  183G  La  Croix  (Cross  Village)  had 
grown  so  much  that  it  was  made  a  regular  mission  station 
and  put  in  charge  of  F.  Vievz.  As  the  Indians  of  this 
place  were  obliged  to  leave  their  village  and  go  to  their 
hunting  grounds  to  follow  the  chase,  F.  Pierz  went  \o 
Sault  Ste.  Marie.  This  place  was  inhabited  by  pagan  In- 
dians and  French-Canadians,  many  of  whom  were  but 
nominal  Catholics.    They  had  not  seen  a  priest  for  almost 


384 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


m 


1  ■  ^' 

Hi'' 


a  year.  The  devoted  missionary  experienced  much  oppo- 
sition from  some  non-Catholics,  who  disliked  the  presence 
of  a  Catholic  clergyman  in  their  midst.  In  the  year  1838 
F.  Pierz  founded  two  Catholic  missions  not  far  from 
Sault  Ste.  Marie  on  the  northern  shore  of  Lake  Superior, 
namely,  one  at  Michipicoton  and  the  other  at  Okwami- 
kissing. 

About  this  time  Bishop  Rese  appointed  Very  Rev. 
Predcric  Baraga  V^icar-General  for  that  portion  of  his  dio- 
cese situated  in  Wisconsin.     The  chief  of  the  Indians  at 
Kitchi    Onigaming    (Grand    Portage,    Minn.)    asked   F. 
Baraga  to  send  a  priest  to  his  i)lace,  as  all  his  people  were 
desirous  of  Baptism.     This  was  most  joyful  news  to  that 
saintly  man.    He  at  once  wrote  to  F.  Pierz,  and  the  latter 
left  Sault  Ste.  Marie  and  went  to  La  Pointe,  Wis.,  where 
Baraga  was  then  stationed.    After  a  few  days'  rest  in  La 
Pointe,  Father  Pierz  embarked  for  Grand  Portage,  where 
he  had  the  hapi)incss  of  founding  a  flourishing  Indian  mis- 
sion.    Besides  imparting  to  his  good  Indians  oral  instruc- 
tion on  the  saving  truths  of  religion,  he  devoted  a  great 
deal  of  time  in  trying  to  teach  them  how  to  read  and  w^rite 
their  own  language,  using  for  this  purpose  Baraga's  Chip- 
pewa prayer  book,  the  "Anamie-^Iasinaigan."    In  the  fall 
of  the  same  vear,  1838,  he  established  another  Indian  mis- 
sion  at  Fort  William,  in  the  Province  of  Ontario,  Canada. 
Then  Vicar-General   Baraga  commissioned  him  to  take 
charge  of  Arbre  Croche  and  its  dependencies  left  vacant 
by  the  departure  of  the  Pedemptorist,  Father  Siinderl,  un- 
der whose  able  and  zealous  management  the  mission  had 
been  in  a  very  flourishing  condition.     Speaking  of  the  In- 
dians of  the  North  Shore  and  elsewhere  under  his  care, 
he  (F.  Pierz)  wrote,  in  1838,  to  the  Leopoldine  Society 
as  follows : 

"During  the  three  years  I  have  spent  among  the  In- 
dians I  have  had  many  occasions  in  various  places  to  no- 
tice the  conduct  and  moral  standing  of  both  baptized  and 


REV.  FRANCIS  PIERZ. 


386 


un- 
pad 

lln- 
ire, 
[etv 

In- 
|no- 
md 


pagan  Indians.  I  must  say  that  they  arc  good-natured, 
humble,  and  docile.  They  are  always  open  to  good  and 
salutary  influences.  Even  in  their  wild  state,  when  not 
perverted  by  others,  they  live  an  innocent  and  pure  life. 
When  a  missionary  comes  to  them  they  listen  to  him  with 
great  attention  and  become  good  Christians.  It  is  more 
difficult  to  convert  those  who  have  been  victims  of  decep- 
tion on  the  part  of  white  people.  By  selling  them  whisky 
and  other  intoxicating  liquors  they  make  them  most 
abominable  wretches.  Among  no  nation  on  the  face  of  the 
earth  will  you  find  so  few  instances  of  theft,  injustice,  or 
infidelity  as  among  Indians.    Murders  are  very  rare." 

Though  engrossed  with  the  care  of  an  extensive  Indian 
mission,  comprising  many  stations,  F.  Pierz  did  not  for- 
get his  dear  Slavonian  counti';)'men  in  Europe.  He  con- 
tinued to  WTite  articles  for  the  "AgTicultural  Association" 
on  all  interesting  topics  relating  to  farming,  gardening, 
inventions,  etc.  The  society  showed  its  appreciation  of 
his  services  in  the  cause  of  agriculture  by  presenting  him 
with  a  silver  medal. 

Another  incident  made  him  happy.  At  his  request, 
and  especially  that  of  F.  Baraga,  another  Slavonian  priest 
left  his  counti*v  to  devote  himself  to  the  Indian  missions, 
namely.  Father — aftenvards  Bishop — Mrak,  the  worthy 
fellow^  laborer  and  successor  of  Bishop  Baraga  in  the  Epis- 
copal See  of  Marquette.  Bishop  Mrak  was  borji  in  Pol- 
jane,  Carniola,  Austria,  on  the  16th  of  October,  1810,  and 
is  thus  at  present  90  years  of  age.  In  the  year  1859  B. 
Baraga  made  him  Vicar-General  for  the  Indian  missions 
located  in  the  Lower  Peninsula  of  Michigan.  Ten  years 
later  he  became  his  successor  in  the  See  of  Marquette. 
Like  his  illustrious  countrymen,  Baraga  and  Pierz,  he  has 
spent  about  forty  or  more  years  in  the  Indian  mission  field, 
and  at  present  (1900)  is  chaplain  at  the  Sisters'  hospital 
in  Marquette.  We  now  have  two  Slavonian  bishops  in 
the  United  States,  namely,  Rt.  Rev.  Ig.  Mrak  and  Rt.  Rev. 


m. 


Nil 


888 


BMGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


M 


u^ 


lif; 


James  Troboe,  besides  a  great  number  of  zealous  Slavonian 
priests.     All  honor  to  their  country ! 

In  1845  several  government  agents  from  Washington 
came  to  Michigan  to  examine  the  state  of  affairs  amongst 
the  Indians  of  the  Northwest.  They  were  most  agreeably 
surprised  at  the  progress  made  by  the  Catholic  Indians  in 
the  arts  and  customs  of  civilized  life.  Many  of  these  In- 
dians were  living  in  neat,  comfortable  houses  and  were 
skillful  workmen.  F.  Pierz  took  the  inspectors  around  in 
the  Indian  village  and  showed  them  everything  of  note. 
The  latter  vero  so  well  pleased  with  what  they  suw  and 
noticed,  that  they  made  presents  to  the  good,  gray  haired 
priest  for  his  Indians. 

Like  Baraga,  F.  Pierz  was  a  strong  advocate  of  tem- 
perance. The  following  incidtiut  \7ill  illustrate  his  suc- 
"cess.  On  a  certain  occasion  some  fur-traders  had  brought 
a  great  many  barrels  of  whisky  into  his  mission.  So 
strong,  however,  were  the  nev;  converts  in  their  dread  and 
hatred  of  drunkenness  that  none  of  them  would  even  touch 
a  drop  of  liquor.  Speaking  of  B.  Baraga  and  F.  Pierz, 
Hon.  Maximilian  Oertel,  for  manv  vears  editor  of  a  Ger- 
man  Catholic  paper,  says : 

"If  our  president  and  his  counselors  would  listen  to 
the  good  advice  which  Father  Pierz,  Bishop  Baraga,  and 
other  missionaries  gave  them,  tliere  would  never  be  any- 
thing heard  about  Modocs  and  other  Indians.'  By  this 
he  means  that  if  our  govcrnmenl  had  followed  the  advice 
of  our  Catholic  missionaries,  the  Indians  would  never  have 
risen  in  tlieir  savage  fury  and  committed  such  outrages 
and  horrible  cruelties  on  the  whites  as  they  have  done  from 
time  to  time,  especially  in  1862,  in  Minnesota. 

From  1838  to  1842  F.  Pierz  labor  3d  most  zealously 
among  the  Indians,  especially  those  of  the  North  Shore,  at 
Fort  William,  Grand  Portage,  ana  other  places.  From 
1840  to  1852  he  seems  to  have  spent  most  of  his  time  at 
Arbre  Croche  and  its  dependent  missions.     In  1848  the 


iJt-J 


*!*■ 


n.       . 


REV.  FRANCIS   PIERZ. 


387 


lired 


en  to 

and 

anv- 

this 

dvice 

Lave 

rages 

from 


last  named  place  had  a  population  of  1,842  Catholic  In- 
dians. Bcides  this  place,  F.  Pierz  had  charge  of  ten 
other  missic  as.  This  was,  however,  too  much  for  an  old 
man  of  sixty  years.  Hence  he  requested  his  bishop  to  di- 
vide the  missions  between  him  and  F.  Mrak,  which  was 
done.  In  the  twelve  years  which  he  had  spent  among  the 
Ottawas  he  had  established  six  flourishing  missions  and 
built  as  many  churches. 

In  1852  F.  Pierz,  at  the  earnest  invitation  of  Bishop 
Cretin,  of  St.  Paul,  went  to  ^linnesota  to  work  at  the  con- 
version of  the  numerous  Chippewas  of  that  state.  From 
time  immemorial  the  Sioux  and  Chippewas  have  been  in 
veterate  enemies.  Frequent  encounters  occurred  between 
them,  especially  at  tlie  headwaters  of  the  St.  Croix  and 
Mississippi  rivers.  For  an  interesting  account  of  these 
Indian  wars  we  refer  the  reader  to  the  work  of  William 
Whipple  Warren  (a  Chippewa  half-breed  bom  in  La 
Pointe,  Wis.),  bearing  the  title,  "History  of  the  Od jib- 
ways,"  which  fonns  volume  five  of  the  Minnesota  Histori- 
cal Society's  collection.  The  work  is  well  worth  reading. 
It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  gifted  author  died  at 
the  early  age  of  twenty-eight. 

Two  great  Indian  missionaries  devoted  their  lives  to 
the  conversion  of  these  two  powerful  Indian  nations, 
Father  Ravoux,  now  of  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  among  the  Sioux, 
and  Father  Pierz  among  the  Chippewas.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances their  labors  must  naturallv  have  been  attended 
with  many  dangers  and  hardships. 

The  Council  of  Baltimore,  in  1849,  decreed  that  the 
large  state  of  Minnesota  be  made  a  bishopric,  with  its  epis- 
copal see  at  St.  Paul.  In  1850  Very  Rev.  Joseph  Cretin 
was  appointed  first  bishop  and  consecrated  January  26, 
1851.  He  died  February  22,  1857.  At  the  end  of  1852 
there  were  but  seven  churches  and  ten  priests  in  his  ex- 
tensive diocese.    At  present,  1900,  there  is  one  archbishop, 


mi 


388 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHEP. 


I     ! 

■»'■.■ 


II 


4li 


11: 


three  bishops,  430  priests,  and  471  churches  in  [Minnesota. 
What  a  change ! 

In  1852  five  of  the  ten  priests  in  the  diocese  of  St.  Paul 
were  laboring  among  tlie  \vliites  and  the  other  five  among 
the  Indians.  There  were  then  but  2,500  CatJiolics  in  the 
whole  diocese.  The  number  of  Indians  in  the  state  at  that 
time  is  put  down  at  50,000,  which  we  are  inclined  to  think 
is  an  exaggeration.  These  Indians  were  in  every  respect 
inferior  to  the  Ottawas,  being  mostly  all  uncivilized  pagans 
and  addicted  to  intemperance  and  war. 

When  B.  Cretin  invited  F.  Pierz  to  labor  in  his  dio- 
cese amongst  his  poor  Indians,  the  latter,  although  weighed 
down  with  the  load  of  sixty-seven  years,  accepted  the  good 
bishop's  proposal  and  without  delay  betook  himself  to  his 
new  field  of  labor.  In  a  very  interesting  Slavonian  poem 
he  describes  the  customs,  habits,  and  peculiarities  of  the 
Chippewa  Indians.  This  poem  he  sent  to  his  friends  in 
the  old  country.  His  mission  took  in  a  great  part  of  Min- 
nesota. He  resided  at  Crow  Wing  and  attended  Mille 
Lacs,  Leach  Lake,  Red  Lake,  Long  Prairie,  Belle  Prairie, 
etc.  The  inhabitants  were  chiefly  Indians,  half-breeds, 
and  French-Canadians;  later  on,  Germans.  It  was  in 
Belle  Prairie  that  the  present  bishop  of  St.  Cloud,  Monsgr. 
James  Trobec,  first  labored.  F.  Pierz  worked  with  great 
zeal  and 'success  amongst  his  Indians.  He  also  visited 
Nagadjiwanang  (Fond  du  Lac,  Minn.),  w'lere  Fathers 
Baraga  and  Skolla  had  preached  the  Gospel  and  made 
many  converts.  Speaking  of  his  labors  at  Crow  Wing, 
Belle  Prairie,  and  elsewhere,  he  writes : 

"Last  winter  I  gave  daily  instruction  in  the  Christian 
doctrine  to  the  Indians  at  Crow  Wing.  In  the  spring  I 
attended  the  missions  of  the  v/hites  which  belong  to  my 
district  on  the  eastern  shores  of  the  Mississippi.  French, 
Irish,  and  Geimans  are  the  predominant  nationalities." 

In  the  early  part  of  June  F.  Pierz  went  to  Methi  (  ?) 
Sagaigan.     H*^  was  obliged  to  travel  through  swamps  and 


REV.  FBANCIS  PIEBZ. 


389 


clio- 


msgr. 
great 
Ksited 
ithers 
I  made 
iVing, 

istian 
ling  I 
10  my 
[ench, 

and 


traverse  lakes  and  rivers  going  thither.  He  d(5clares  that 
he  never  was  so  tired  in  all  his  life  as  on  this  journey.  His 
cook  and  teacher  were  his  sole  companions.  All  three  of 
them  were  ohliged  to  carry  heavy  packs,  containing  their 
provisions,  church  utensils,  etc.,  notwithstanding  which 
they  made  twenty  miles  in  eight  hours.  When  they  ar- 
rived at  Lake  Kegonoganika  they  found  a  canoe  and  with 
it  traversed  the  lake.  Towards  the  evening  of  the  second 
day  they  arrived  at  their  destination.  Tnis  will  give  the 
reader  some  idea  of  the  hardships  this  aged,  Apostolic  mis- 
sionary had  to  endure  in  attending  his  many  missions. 

In  a  letter  written  in  1857  to  his  friend,  Kev.  M.  Kris- 
tan,  in  Vace,  Carniola,  he  says  that,  although  being  seventy 
years  of  age,  he  felt  well  and  healthy.  Ho  had  founded 
teri  new  missions  durini?  the  last  three  vears  and  built  two 
Indian,  two  French,  and  six  Gennan  churches  near  Sauk 
River.  He  gave  the  German  missions  to  the  Fathers  of  the 
Benedictine  Order  and  the  others  to  a  French  missionary. 
He  was  determined  to  devote  the  remainder  of  his  life  to 
the  Indian  mission.  The  next  spring  he  intended  to  go 
north,  from  400  to  COO  miles,  to  the  Chippewas  at  Red 
Lake.  He  went  thither  with  F.  Lautischar,  and  the  latter 
was  left  there  to  continue  the  srood  work.  He  froze  to 
death  on  Red  Lake  in  1858,  and  was  buried  at  Crow  Wing 
by  F.  Pierz  Dec.  26th  of  that  year.  About  four  or  five 
years  ago  his  remains  were  brought  to  Dulutli  and  buried 
there.  Father — now  Bishop — Trobec  preached  an  elo- 
quent sermon  on  this  occasion.  F.  Pierz  composed  a  beau- 
tiful poem  on  the  virtues  and  noble  qualities  of  his  de- 
pai-ted  friend  and  assistant. 

In  January,  1864,  Father  Pierz  went  to  Europe  to  pro- 
cure pecuniars^  assistance  and  zealous  priests  for  his  many 
missions.  He  visited  the  principal  cities  of  his  native  land, 
preaching  in  many  places  two  and  three  times  a  day.  He 
succeeded  in  securing  a  goodly  number  of  priests  and  the- 
ologians for  the  American  mission.     We  mention  the  fol- 


390 


BIOOHAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


>4. 


lowing  names:  Very  Rev.  Jos.  Buh,  of  Tower,  Minn., 
Vicar-General  of  the  diocese  of  Duhith,  who  has  labored 
long  and  well  among  the  Indians  at  Sandy  Lake,  Cass 
Lake,  and  Upper  Mississippi ;  Rev.  John  Zuzek,  Ignatius 
Tomazin,  and  Jas.  Trobec,  now  bisliop  of  St.  Cloud.  They 
came  from  the  diocese  of  Laibach,  Austria.  From  the  dio- 
cese of  Gorica  were  Rev.  A.  Pint,  John  Tomazevic,  and 
Jas.  Erlali.  It  was  also  on  this  occasion  that  the  present 
occupant  of  the  archiepiscopal  see  of  Milwaukee,  Most 
Rev.  Frederic  Xaver  Katzer,  came  from  Europe.  The 
theologians,  Stem,  Spath,  and  Erlach  came  with  him.  In 
1865  Fathers  Buh  and  Zuzek  aided  Pierz  in  the  mission- 
ary field.  F.  Buh  labored  at  Winnibigoshish  among  the 
Chippewas,  and  Zuzek  at  Crow  Wing.  In  June,  1865, 
Rev.  Ig.  Tomazin  j  ined  the  ranks  of  the  Indian  mission- 
aries of  Minnesota. 

They  all  went  to  St.  Paul  together  to  make  their  re- 
treat, at  the  end  of  which  Father  Pierz  celebrated  his 
golden  jubilee  in  the  cathedral  of  St.  Paul,  and  made  a 
Latin  address  to  the  assembled  Fathers. 

In  a  letter  to  the  bishop  of  Laibach  he  writes  that  on 
the  16th  of  August  they  saw  a  hmiinous  cross  in  the  sky 
of  indescribable  beauty.  F.  Tomazin  was  the  first  to  no- 
tice it  and  pointed  it  out  to  Pierz.  This  wonderful  cross 
shone  for  fully  thirty  minutes.  "These  signs,"  remarks 
F.  Pierz,  "are  certainly  not  meteors  or  other  fantastic  phe- 
nomena. They  are  iindoubtedly  signs  of  divine  mercy  for 
the  conversion  of  the  Indians.  Seeing  these  signs,  mothers 
brought  their  little  ones  to  be  baptized.  Even  the  adults 
willingly  received  the  consolations  of  the  Church." 

As  his  health  was  beginning  to  fail,  his  many  friends 
advised  him  to  resign  his  mission,  and  an  accident  occnr- 
ring  at  this  time  injured  his  health  very  much.  On  a  jour- 
ney to  Sauk  Centre  the  good  old  missionary,  then  eighty- 
four  years  old,  fell  out  of  the  vehicle  in  Avhicli  he  was  rid- 
ing.   He  but  slowly  recovered  from  the  effects  of  this  acci- 


BEV.  FRANCIS   TIERZ. 


391 


dt'iit,  but,  bt'iug  gifted  with  a  stronp^,  good  constitution, 
he  gradually  regained  his  former  healtli.  Jn  1S70  we  tind 
him  in  Otter  1'ail  still  attending  the  neighb<u-ing  missions. 
But  now  his  sight  began  to  fail.  .In  a  letter  dated  Ilich 
Prairie,  Jan.  :20tli,  1870,  he  comidains  that  he  had  lost  his 
sight  to  sueh  an  extent  that  he  could  not  see  to  read  news- 
papers. ''In  the  eighty-seventh  year  of  my  age  I  fail  visi- 
bly. The  year  before  last  I  could  still  easily  attend  twelve 
missions  and  preach  in  French,  German,  and  Indian." 

In  1873  Father  Pierz  left  for  Eur()i)e  to  spend  the  re- 
mainder of  his  days  with  his  dear  friends  in  Carniola. 
For  thirty-eight  years  he  had  labored  amidst  a  thousand 
hardships  and  privations  amongst  the  Ottawas  and  Chip- 
pewas  of  the  Xorthwest.  Considering  that  all  this  amaz- 
ing labor  was  done  bv  a  man  fiftv  vears  of  ai>e  when  enter- 
ing  upon  his  Apostolic  career  in  the  Indian  missionary 
iield,  and  that  ho  continued  therein  uninterruptedly  until 
his  eighty-eighth  year,  we  must  say  that  his  case  can 
scarcely  find  a  parallel  in  the  missionary  records  of  ancient 
or  modern  times.*  The  nearest  approach  to  it  is  that  of 
his  worthy  and  zealous  fellow  missionary  and  countryman, 
Bishop  Mrak,  of  Marquette,  who  is  now  (11)00)  ninety 
years  old.  Father  Pierz's  missions  were  given  to 
Fathers  Buh  and  Tomazin.  At  present  almost  all  the  In- 
dian missions  of  Minnesota  are  in  charge  of  the  Benedic- 
tine Fathers. 

On  the  third  of  September,  1ST3,  F.  rierz  left  for 
Europe.  Father  Tomazin  accompanied  him.  After  a 
month's  \oyage  they  arrived  at  Laibach  on  the  third  of 
October.     While  sailing  on  the  broad  Atlantic,  in  his  88th 


'■' 


u 


4. 


*Siiice  writing  the  above  we  learn  that  Father  Dii  Ranquet,  S.  J., 
-10  from  France  in  the  thirties,  and  lias  been  among  the  Indians 
ever  since — that  is,  for  a  period  of  over  sixty  years!  All  honor  to 
this  noble  Indian  missionary,  of  whom  Bishop  Baraga  always  speaks 
in  terms  of  great  respect  in  his  journal.  He  is  now  stationed  at 
Wickwemikong,  Manitoulin  Island. 


392 


BIOGRAPHICAL   8KET0HES. 


year,  F.  Pierz  composed  a  most  interesting  and  touching 
poem,  entitled,  "Song  on  Bishop  Baraga."  Tlie  fact,  as 
well  as  his  many  letters,  reveal  his  deep  love  and  veneration 
for  saintly  Baraga,  whose  many  virtues  he  had  learned  to 
prize  and  imitate. 

He  made  Kanmik,  near  which  he  had  been  born,  his 
home  for  some  time,  staying  there  with  the  Franciscan 
Fathers.  The  year  following  he  went  to  Laibach,  where 
he  died  on  the  22d  of  January,  1880,  in  his  94th  year. 

His  funeral  was  conducted  with  great  solemnity.  The 
Bishop  of  Laibach,  Msgr.  J.  K.  Pogacar,  with  a  gTeat  num- 
ber of  the  clergy,  the  various  societies  ard  delegates  from 
all  parts  of  the  country,  came  to  pay  their  last  tribute  of 
respect  to  the  man  and  priest,  the  pride  and  glory  of  Slavo- 
nia,  and  one  of  the  greatest  Indian  missionaries  of  modem 
times.  His  dear  friend,  Canon  Zupan,  preached  an  elo- 
quent funeral-sermon  on  the  labor  and  virtues  of  the  de- 
ceased. Canon  Zamejec  made  it  his  duty  to  collect  volun- 
tary contributions  for  erecting  a  suitable  monument  on  the 
grave  of  the  great  missionary  priest.  However,  Father 
Pierz  has  erected  a  monument  more  enduring  than  brass 
in  the  grateful  hearts  of  thou.*ands  of  devoted  Catholics  on 
both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

On  May  20,  1885,  the  Catho.ics  of  Stearns  Comity, 
Minnesota,  celebrattd  the  centenarv  of  Father  Pierz's 
birih  and  4116  thirtieth  year  since  his  lirst  holy  Mass  in 
that  country.  "What  .m  astonishing  difference  between 
now  and  then,"  writes  F.  Buh.  "In  those  days  notliing 
was  to  be  seen  but  roving  bands  of  Indians,  roaming  from 
place  to  place  without  lav  fixed  habitation.  Kow  we  be- 
hold beautiful  churches  and  raagn'Licent  buildings  on  all 
sides  where  F.  Pierz  first  planted  the  Cross." 

But  F.  Pierz  has  another  claim  on  the  grateful  remem- 
brance of  the  ])oople  of  ^liiinesota.  He  was  not  only  a 
pioneer  of  religion,  but  also  of  civilization.  He  was  an 
organizer  and  promoter  of  immigration.     In  his  numerous 


REV.  OTTO  8K0LLA. 


393 


letters  published  by  tbe  press  he  directed  attention  to  the 
agricultural  and  other  resources  of  Minnesota  and  thus  in- 
duced many  to  make  it  their  home.  The  Gennaii  settlers 
of  Minnesota  have  added  millions  to  tlie  national  wealth  by 
their  industry  and  thrift. 


vm 


EEV.  OTTO  SKOLLA,  0.  S.  F.,  St.  Obs. 

A  SirORT  SKETCit  OF  HIS  LABORS  IX  THE 
lA'DIAN  MISSIONARY  FIELD. 

As  Father  Skolla  succeeded  Baraga  in  La  Pointe,  it 
seems  but  right  that  we  should  give  a  short  account  of  his 
missionary  labors.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  nothing 
can  be  found  about  his  parents,  birthplace,  or  early  years. 
In  obedience  to  an  order  of  Very  Rev.  Bernadine  de  Mon- 
tefranco,  Minister-General  of  the  Franciscans  from  1856 
to  18 02,  he  wrote  a  Latin  account  of  his  labors  at  Macki- 
nac, La  Pointe,  Fond  du  Lac,  Oconto  River  and  Keshena, 
which  was  published  in  the  Franciscan  monthly,  "La  Pal- 
estina,"  in  1801.  We  have  followed  this  account  and  his 
letters  published  in  the  "Berichte  der  Leopoldinen-Stift- 
uns',"  Vienna. 

Father  Skolln  wi  s  born  in  Dalmatia,  Austria.  lie  en- 
tered the  Francisca]!  Order  and  belonged  to  that  branch 
of  it  which  was  called  "Of  the  Strict  Observance."  For 
some  time  he  resided  in  a  monastery  of  his  order  near  the 
very  place  where  the  holy  house  of  Xazareth  had  been  de- 
posited by  angelic  hands  prior  to  its  transportation  to 
Loretto,  Italy. 

Even  in  his  youth  Skolla  felt  a  great  desire  to  labor  at 
the  solvation  of  souls  as  missionarv.    This  desire  increased 

V' 

by  the  frequent  reading  of  mission  accounts,  especially  of 
those  written  bv  F.  Baraca.  So,  finallv,  he  wrote  to  him 
to  be  admitted  to  lalwr  with  him  at  the  conversion  of  the 


n 


\ 
f  1 


t-;! 


If 


v^f 


f 


f  t  i  ■ 
[    ^ 

I.?  .1  1 


1    !  i 


394 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


i 


h)i 


1   ^i 


m 


Indians.  In  the  month  of  August,  1840,  he  received  a  let- 
ter from  Baraga,  in  which  the  latter  stated  that  the  bisho}> 
of  Detroit  would  receive  him  into  his  diocese  to  work 
among  the  Indians.  This  was  happy  news  for  F.  SkoLa. 
He  immediately  asked  his  Provincial,  Very  Rev.  Felician 
Kant,  to  grant  him  pennission  to  devote  himself  to  the  In- 
dian mission.  After  a  dne  trial  of  his  vocation  the  per- 
mission w^as  given  in  writing.  He  then  w^'ote  to  the  Leo- 
poldine  Society  of  Vienna  to  kindly  fnrnish  him  with  the 
necessary  traveling  money.  The  directors  of  the  society 
gave  him  400  florins  through  the  hands  of  the  bishop  of 
Laibach.  Then  ho  wrote  to  the  Apostolic  i!^imtiii3  in 
Vienna  to  obtain  throngh  his  mediation  the  necessary  dis- 
pensation from  those  points  of  his  vow^s  and  rule,  wliich 
were  incompatible  with  Indian  missionary  life.  The  Nim- 
tins  sent  this  letter  of  F.  Skolla,  accompanied  with  his  rec- 
ommendation, to  the  Sacred  Congregation  de  Propaganda 
Fide  at  Rome,  which  granted  the  dispensation. 

After  all  these  necessary  preliminaries  had  been  duly 
settled,  F.  Skolla  took  leave  of  his  Franciscan  brethren 
and  went  to  Tergestnm.  After  a  few  days  he  embarked  on 
a  merchant  ship,  called  "Fallmonth,"  on  the  24th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1841.  The  ship  soon  encountered  fearful  storms. 
She  sprang  a  leak  and  was  often  in  great  danger  of  found- 
ering, as  she  was  small  and  altogether  unseaw'orthy.  The 
sea  voyage  lasted  three  long  months,  during  wliich  time 
they  encountered  more  than  twenty  severe  storms.  What 
made  the  vovafte  still  more  tedious  was  the  circumstance 
that  he  had  no  countryman  on  board  except  a  Pole,  who 
was  very  unruly  and  once  came  near  being  killed  by  the 
captain  of  the  vessel.  Their  icM  was  very  salty,  and  the 
water  scarce,  impure,  and  full  of  worms.  Provisions  also 
became  low,  as  the  voyage  lasted  unusually  long  on  account 
of  the  many  stonns  and  contrary  winds.  Finally,  on  the 
25th  of  December,  1841,  Father  Skolla  landed  at  Xew 
York. 


REV.  OTTO  8K0LLA. 


395 


id  a  let- 
!  bishop 
o  work 
SkoLa. 
i'elician 
the  In- 
he  per- 
he  Leo- 
;ith  the 
society 
shop  of 
tins  in 
iry  dis- 
wliich 
.e  Xun- 
his  rec- 
aganda 

n  duly 

ethreri 

ved  on 

)f  Sep- 

torms. 

found- 

The 

time 

What 

stance 

who 

)y  the 

d  the 

s  also 

count 

n  the 

Xew 


I 


As  soon  as  he  had  get  ashore  he  inquired  for  the 
bishop's  house,  and,  arriving  there,  presented  his  letters  to 
the  bishop.  The  latter  directed  him  to  F.  Ivo  Levitz,  a 
coimtryman  and  a  Franciscan  of  the  same  province  to 
which  Skolla  had  belonged.  He  staved  with  him  until 
spring,  assisting  him  in  the  care  of  his  large  flock.  F. 
Skol'<  tjreached  his  first  sermon  in  the  Xew  World  on  Xew 
Year's  day,  1842. 

In  the  beginning  of  May  he  left  I^^ew  York,  traveling 
for  almost  two  weeks  on  the  Erie  Canal.  About  the  15th 
of  May  he  arrived  at  Detroit,  and  was  kindly  received  by 
Bishop  Lefevre,  who  had  but  lately  succeeded  B.  Rese,  re- 
signed. The  kind-hearted  bishop  quei-tioned  Skolla  as  to 
the  particulars  of  his  journey,  country,  and  plans  for  the 
future.  He  asked  the  bishop  to  let  him  go  to  F.  Baraga, 
to  act  a::;  his  assistant,  as  had  been  agreed  on  between  B. 
Bese,  Baraga,  and  himself.  The  bishop,  however,  told  him 
that  he  could  not  let  him  go  there  at  present,  as  he  had  too 
few  German  priests  in  his  diocese,  but  that  he  would  allow 
him  to  go  the  next  year. 

Father  Skolla,  therefore,  took  charge  of  the  German 
congregation  of  Detroit,  wdiich  then  numbered  some  6,000 
souls.  He  resided  witli  the  bishop.  Besides  the  German, 
there  were  also  an  Irish  and  a  French  congregation  in  De- 
troit. The  latter  was  in  charge  of  Rev.  Francis  Vincent 
Badin,  Vicar-General.  The  Cathedral  congregation  con- 
sisted then  of  French  and  Germans.  The  Germans  had 
high  Mass  with  seraion  at  S  a.  m.^  and  the  French  at  10 
A.  M.  Strict  order  was  observed  in  the  bishop's  house.  Xo 
one  was  allowed  to  go  out  without  permission.  Spiritual 
reading  was  held  at  table  and  prayers  said  in  common 
every  e^'^ening.  The  religious  instruction  of  the  German 
children  at  the  parochial  school  devolved  on  F.  Skolla,  and 
we  may  be  sure  he  did  his  duty  well.  He  had,  moreover, 
to  attend  some  ( 


nn 
W 


J. 

1  V- 


il  Vt  8; 


:'man 


3  ions 


J 


Lake  Plaisante,  and  Pontiac. 


396 


BIOaRAPHIOAL  SKETCHES. 


■!  I 


In  June,  1843,  F.  Skolla  was  sent  to  ^Eackinac,  whither 
he  went,  accompanied  by  his  countryman.  Father  Pierz. 
From  Mackinac  they  Avent  in  a  birch  canoe  to  Arbre 
Croche  (Harbor  Springs).  The  following  Sunday  Skolla 
preached  in  French,  and  his  sermon  was  interpreted  into 
Ottaw^a  by  an  interpreter.  Towards  the  end  of  July  he 
returned  to  Mackinac,  where  he  was  most  joyfully  received 
by  the  people  of  the  island.  He  estimates  the  population, 
most  of  whom  were  French-Canadians  and  half-breeds,  at 
two  thousand  souls.  The  Catholic  soldiers  at  the  fort  used 
to  attend  holy  Mass  regularly  and  F.  Skolla  would  preach 
to  them  a  short  English  sermon,  as  his  knowledge  of  the 
English  language  must  have  been  very  limited  as  yet.  In 
1845  the  soldiers  left  to  take  part  in  the  Mexican  war. 
During  his  stay  of  two  years  at  Mackinac  he  baptized  more 
than  forty  pagan  Indians. 

In  the  beginning  of  autumn,  1845,  B.  Lefevre  came  to 
Mackinac  and  gave  confiiTnation  to  a  great  niunber  of 
adults  and  children.  On  this  occasion  he  gave  permission 
to  Father  Skolla  to  go  to  L'Anse  to  labor  with  F.  Baraga 
in  the  Indian  missions  of  the  Lake  Superior  coimtry. 
Father  Skolla  left  Mackinac  in  September,  1845,  and  went 
by  iteamer  to  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  which  then  had  scarcely 
twenty  houses.  Xext  day  he  embarked  on  a  merchant  ves- 
sel, which  in  twelve  days  brought  him  to  L'Anse.  After 
staying  three  days  with  Baraga  they  went  together  in  a 
birch  canoe  to  La  Pointe.  At  first  F.  Skolla  was  naturally 
very  much  afraid  to  ride  in  such  a  frail  boat — a  mere  nut- 
shell, so  to  say — but  seeing  how  unconcerned  his  Indian 
companions  were,  how  they  were  laughing  and  singing  all 
the  time,  he  soon  conquered  his  unnecessary  fear  and  got 
used  to  this  new  mode  of  traveling.  In  fact,  the  writer 
can  say  from  expericK-^e  that  it  is  safer  to  travel  on  water 
in  a  birch  canoe  than  in  many  of  our  dug-outs  and  small 
boats — that  is,  if  you  have  Indians  to  paddle  and  steer  the 
canoe.    On  the  od  of  October,  the  Vigil  of  St.  Francis  day, 


vhither 

Pierz. 

Arbre 

SkoUa 

ed  into 

ruly  he 

eeeived 

ilation, 

3eds,  at 

>rt  used 

preach 

(  of  the 

et.    In 

in  war. 

)d  more 

jame  to 
iber  of 
mission 
Baraga 
ountry. 
id  went 
carcely 
t  ves- 
After 
r  in  a 
urally 
Ire  nut- 
ndian 
ng  all 
[nd  got 
writer 
water 
small 
er  the 
day, 


REV.  OTTO  SKOLLA, 


897 


the  Founder  of  his  Order,  Father  Skolla  arrived  at  La 
Pointe,  and  the  next  day  said  Mass  on  the  island  for  the 
first  time. 

The  good  people  of  La  Pointe  received  the  missionaries 
with  great  joy.  Baraga  introduced  the  new  pastor  and 
spent  a,  few  days  with  his  dear  former  parishioners  and 
then  departed  for  L'Anse.  F.  Skolla  said  high  Mass  every 
Sunday  at  ten  o'clock,  and  after  the  first  Gospel  would 
preach  in  French.  The  Mass  being  ended,  he  would  preach 
for  the  Chippewa  portion  of  his  flock,  Antoine  Gaud  in 
(Gordon)  acting  as  interi? .  eter.  The  wa*iter  is  personally 
acquainted  with  Mr.  Gaudin,  who  now  resides  at  Gordon, 
Wis.,  and  has  a  hotel  and  store  there.  He  is  a  practical 
Catholic  and  the  mainstay  of  religion  in  his  town.  He 
has  likewise  contributed  very  liberally  towards  the  erection 
of  the  neat  little  church  in  Gordon,  and  on  Sunday  he  acts 
as  quasi-pastor  to  his  Chippewa  countrymen,  reading  to 
them  the  prayers  of  Mass  and  the  Gospel. 

At  La  Pointe,  on  Sunday  afteraoons,  Vespers  were 
sung  in  Chippewa,  followed  by  Benediction  with  the 
Blessed  Sacrament.  Then  F.  Skolla  would  give  a  catechet- 
ical instruction  to  his  Chippewa  flock,  Antoine  Gaudin 
again  acting  as  interpreter.  Every  Wednesday  and  Sat- 
urday he  used  to  hear  confessions  by  means  of  an  inter- 
preter until  he  had  become  sufficiently  proficient  in  Chip- 
pewa to  be  able  to  dispense  with  his  services.  The  people 
were  innocent  and  simple;  they  were  accustomed  to  con- 
fess even  their  slight  faults  with  great  sorrow  and  contri- 
tion, and  oftentimes  they  would  weep  bitterly  when  accus- 
ing themselves  of  more  grievous  sins.  After  holy  Com- 
munion the  whole  congregation  devoutly  said  the  holy 
rosary. 

In  May,  1846,  F.  Skolla  went  to  Fond  du  Lac,  Minn., 
with  the  above  named  intei^reter  and  some  half-breeds, 
where  he  was  welcomed  with  sig-ns  of  unfeigned  joy  by  the 
newly  converted  Indians.     The  pagans  were  engaged  in 


II 


;1& 


4-' 

■III 


i  %/l 


,m 


,  f 


398 


hi      J 


■ill    ^ 


I  : 


;   ■ 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


their  great  medicine  dance,  wliieli  generally  lasted  several 
days,  at  times  even  two  weeks  or  a  montli,  if  they  had 
plenty  of  provisions.  Before  beginning  the  dance  one  of 
their  orators  made  a  speech.    He  spoke  as  follows : 

"Our  forefathers  have  faithfully  kept  the  great  medi- 
cine dance  until  this  day  because  it  prevents  sickness  and 
keeps  our  children  healthy.  You  know  there  is  a  manitou 
(god)  in  the  earth,  who  makes  the  plants  and  herbs  io 
grow,  who  gives  us  fishes  out  of  the  waters  and  wood  and 
fire  with  which  to  cook  our  victuals  and  warm  ourselves. 
This  manitou  below  in  the  earth  gives  us  food  and  drink. 
Pat  there  is  another  manitou  above,  who  rules  the  winds, 
the  air,  and  the  seasons.  Know  that  if  you  observe  the 
great  medicine  dance  you  will  go,  after  death,  to  a  place 
of  happiness,  where  you  will  always  beat  the  drum  and 
dance  the  great  medicine  dance.  But  those  who  despise 
the  great  medicine  dance  shall  have  to  pass,  after  death, 
over  a  long  bridge,  under  which  two  large  serpents  are 
lurking.  When  such  a  soul  gets  to  the  middle  of  the  bridge 
she  is  seized  and  devoured  by  those  two  serpents !" 

Another  orator  spoke  as  follows: 

"My  children,  I  think  that  your  fathers,  some  of  whom 
have  died  long  ago,  told  you  what  a  great  famine  they  suf- 
fered in  this  place  and  how  they  hunted  through  all  the 
forests  in  this  vicinity ;  but  they  did  not  bring  home  from 
their  chase  neither  bear,  nor  rabbit,  nor  wolf ;  neither  did 
they  have  anything  else  wherewith  to  sustain  life,  so  that 
many  of  them  died  of  hunger.  You  know  that  some  of 
your  brothers  received  letters  of  acknowledgment  and  large 
medals  from  the  English  government  for  having  helped 
the  English  in  their  war  with  the  Erench-Canadians,  be- 
cause they  had  fought  bravely;  many,  however,  fell  in 
said  war.  This  fact  is  a  subject  of  great  praise  to  our  na- 
tion, but  also  a  cause  of  great  ruin  to  our  people  on  account 
of  your  brothers  who  perished.  You  know,  likewise,  that 
our  forefathers,  many  centuries  ago,  came  from  very  dis- 


[  several 
hej  had 
3  one  of 

I 

at  medi- 
less  and 
manitou 
lierbs  to 
ood  and 
iirselves. 
d  drink. 
e  winds, 
erve  the 

a  place 
iim  and 

despise 
r  death, 
enb  are 
e  bridge 


:  whom 
hey  suf- 
all  the 
ae  from 
ler  did 
so  that 
ome  of 
d  large 
helped 
ms,  be- 
fell in 
our  na- 
iccount 
le,  that 
Yj  dis- 


REV.  OTTO   SKOLLA. 


399 


taut  countries  through  a  narrow  strait  of  the  sea  to  our 
shores.*  Tliey  used  to  worship  tiie  sun,  the  moon,  the 
stars,  fire,  water,  statues  of  stone,  crabs,  beavers,  owls,  and 
serpents.  They  built  shrines  in  shady  places,  and  tem- 
ples, in  which  oracles  were  to  be  given.  Behold,  this  same 
worship  of  the  manitous  (gods)  continues  with  us  to  the 
present  day.  Therefore,  my  children,  do  not  join  the  re- 
ligion of  those  people  who  are  dressed  in  black  (priests), 
who  preach  about  the  Cross ;  but  keep  faithfully  your  do- 
mestic gods,  as  your  forefathers  have  done,  in  order  that 
our  nation  may  not  be  scattered  amongst  other  nations, 
lest  it  be  entirely  dissolved  and  eradicated.  I  therefore 
enjoin  upon  my  sons,  the  medicine  men,  to  watch  that  none 
of  our  people  join  the  religion  of  the  black  robes,  so  that 
our  name  may  continue.  Hence,  my  sons,  I  shall  give  you 
a  feast  today,  but  tomorrow  and  the  following  days  of  this 
festival  every  family  is  to  contribute.  Should  any  one  of 
them  be  unable  to  furnish  all  necessaries  for  the  feast,  their 
neighbors  are  to  help  them.  People  are  to  bring  from  the 
chase  deer  and  rabbits  and  that  will  suffice  for  the  entire 
time  of  the  great  medicine  dance.  Beat  the  drum,  young 
men  !  Begin  the  dance !''  Then  all,  both  voung  and  old, 
shouted :    "Taia !  Ataiia !  Well !  Ver>^  Welfl" 

Then  with  folded  arm.s  and  great  reverence  they 
walked  in  procession  around  a  wooden  owl  placed  upon  a 
post  in  the  middle  of  a  medicine  lodge.  At  the  entrance  a 
linen  cloth  was  spread  on  the  ground,  on  which  lay  all 
kinds  of  roots  and  herbs  supposed  to  possess  medical 
powers  or  held  in  superstitious  veneration,  to  which  they 
offered  a  kind  of  sacrifice  in  the  shape  of  tobacco.  The 
medicine  men,  or  jugglers,  would  often  touch  these  plants 
and  roots  with  their  hands  and  add  some  herbs  of  their 
o^^Ti.    Then  thev  mixed  the  roots  and  flowers  with  tobacco 

*The  speaker  seems  to  allude  to  an  old  tradition  that  they  came 
from  Asia  to  America  via  Behring's  Strait. 


If-,  I 


4 


i 


WW- 


I 


*■  ; 


400 


BIOGRArHICAL   SKETCHES. 


and  certain  paints,  made  from  a  decoction  of  roots  or  some 
other  substance,  and  formed  magical  signs  over  them. 
This  ceremony  ended,  they  sat  down  wit)i  their  wives  and 
children,  to  eat. 

As  the  pagans  at  Fond  da  Lac  were  then  too  much  oc- 
cupied with  their  su]  erstitious  perfonnance,  F.  Sk«"Ha-'did 
not  accomplish  much  at  this,  his  first,  visit;  lo  bapti.Tt;d 
but  six  person  ,  Oi  Hijbsequeit  visi*-  to  tlie  same  place 
he  went  to  see  *  -  i^ij^raiis  in  their  wigwams  and  quietly 
and  kindly  sp  ke  v  Ixcra  about  religion,  but  in  vain.  On 
his  way  back  to  Francii^  itvi  ssain  he  said  sadly  to  himself: 
Why  did  you  come  here  I  You  will  accomplish  nothing. 
Suddenly  he  met  a  very  old  Indian  of  dark  complexion, 
who  could  scarcely  move  along  from  want  and  sickness. 
Skolla  asked  him,  "Are  you  sick  ?"  "^'Yes,"  say  he,  "I  am 
veiy  sick."  "'Friend,"  said  the  missionai*y,  "what  a  hap- 
piness would  be  yours  if  you  would  but  believe  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  whom  I  am  preaching !  See, 
you  are  sick  and  suffer  hunger,  but  if  you  receive  Baptism 
you  will  be  happy  forever  in  heaven  and  you  will  never 
again  be  hungry  or  sick."  The  old,  hitherto  obstinate, 
pagan  answered:  "Just  now,  a  I  this  very  moment,  I  was 
thinking  in  my  mind  whether  I  could  be  baptized,  for  my 
last  hour  is  near  at  hand.  Come,  therefore,  and  baptize 
me  now."  The  good  Father,  overjoyed,  instnicted  him 
immediatel  and  then  baptized  him.  The  next  day  the 
old  man  died.  Lie  had  always  been  a  medicine  man  and 
very  strongly  attached  to  paganism..  "Spiritus  spirat  ubi 
vult" — "The  Spirit  breathoth  w^here  he  will."  On  this 
occasion  Father  Skolla  remained  a  whole  month  in  Fond 
du  Lac  and  baptized  fifteen  Indians,  adults  and  children. 

In  1853  he  made  his  last  visit  to  Fond  du  Lac,  in  com- 
pany with  John  Bell  and  family.  When  disembarking  he 
noticed  a  particular  joy  depicted  on  the  faces  of  his  good 
neophytes.  He  asked  his  host,  Francis  Roussain,  for  the 
reason.    The  latter  replied :    "It  was  the  will  of  God  that 


REV.  OTTO   KKOLLA. 


401 


Dr  some 
•  them, 
ves  and 

lucli  oc- 

rllff'did 

>apti.Tcd 
le  place 
quietly 
in.  On 
[limself : 
nothing, 
iplexion, 
sickness, 
e,  "I  am 
t  a  liap- 
the  Lord 


^g 


!    See, 


Baptism 
1  never 
3stinate, 
t,  I  was 
for  my 
baptize 
bed  him 
day  the 
nan  and 
►irat  ubi 
On  this 
■in  Fond 
hildren. 
in  com- 
L'king  he 
liis  good 
for  the 
rod  that 


>  SkoDa,  the 

The  whole 

Finally  the 


you  came  to  ns  today,  for  while  you  were  still  a  great  dis- 
tance away  we  already  knew  that  you  were  coming.  A 
young  paf'-an  boy  of  scarcely  eight  years,  and  very  sick, 
near  by,  whilst  lying  ^'^i  bed,  said  this  morning  to  his  par- 
ents, joyfully:  "Behold,  I  see  a  man  with  a  black  gar- 
ment at  such  a  point — naming  the  place — who  is  coming 
to  bap^'ze  me.  I  see  him  sitting  in  a  boat  and  holding  a 
book  in  his  hand.  John  Bell  and  his  family  are  coming 
with  him."  What  the  boy  said  was  exactly  true.  For  at 
that  very  place  and  at  that  very  time  F.  Skolla  h^id  in  his 
hand  ''The  Imitation  of  Christ"  and  wa.'-'  '  ling  some 
chapters  in  that  book.  He  was  then  soi  .;.  c;  .  miles  or 
thereabonts  from  Fond  du  Lac. 

When  Mr.  lloussain  related  this  inci   ..i>« 
latter  went  immediately  to  the  boy's  ]»  ust 
family  was  silent,  but  full  of  consols;     :■ 
pagan  mother  stooped  down  to  her  sick  v.hild  and  said  to 
him : '  '*See,  my  son,  the  priest  is  here  whom  you  have  de- 
sired so  earnestly  to  see  in  order  to  be  baptized  by  him. 
Come,  my  son,  tell  now  in  his  presence,  that  he  may  hear 
it  himself,  what  you  have  seen  this  morning."     The  sick 
boy  having  regarded  the  Father  with  an  expression  of 
much  inner  contentment,  said,  with  a  weak  voice :    "Today 
before  noon,  from  my  bed  here,  when  you  were  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  lake  (where  the  St.  Louis  River  enters  St. 
Louis  Bay,  an  ann  of  Lake  Superior),  I  saw  you  sitting 
in  the  boat  and  holding  a  book  in  your  hand.     Bell  was 
also  Avith  you  and  his  wife  and  three  children.    And  I  said 
to  my  mother,  'Behold,  the  black  gown  (priest)  is  coming 
here  to  baptize  me.'  "     The  mother  then  said :     "I,  too, 
and  my  whole  family  want  to  be  baptized  by  you."     The 
boy  was  then  duly  instructed  and  baptized,  and  died  not 
long  afterwards.    At  his  funeral  F.  Skolla  held  a  funeral 
sennon,  very  appropriate  for  the  occasion.     He  spoke  as 
follows : 

"Dearest  friends!     Take  good  notice  of  my  words. 


! 

I 


,i< 


4^i 


1         1 

i 

ill 

\ 

i  / 


i    V 


'    I 


■h 


402 


BIOOnAPaiCAL   SKETCHES. 


Tlio  Groat  Spirit  ?nys:  ''irappy  are  the  dead  who  die  in 
t^le  Lord."  Now  you  arc  living  on  earth  and  after  a  few 
years  yonr  life  will  eonie  to  an  end  and  then  nv)ne  of  you 
will  bo  left  any  more  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  The  same 
thing"  will  happen  to  your  children  and  the  whole  human 
race.  You  freei  ently  see  your  brethren  taken  away  out 
of  this  world  and  you  don't  see  them  any  longer.  Their 
souls  ente-  another  world,  but  their  bodies  putrefy  in  the 
ground  But  those  same  bodies  shall  rise  again  on  the  last 
day  .\'hen  all  men  who  are  on  eailh  shall  have  died.  But 
'^^me  shall  rise  unto  eternal  life  and  others  unto  eternal 
death.  Eternal  life  is  the  happiness  of  heaven  and  eternal 
death  is  the  torment  of  hell.  Those  go  to  heaven  who  are 
baptized  and  during  all  their  life  do  good,  wdio  believe  in 
one  God  and  in  the  Son  of  God,  Jesus  Christ,  who  died  on 
.he  Cross  to  destroy  the  gins  of  the  whole  world.  Finally, 
ti.ey  go  to  heaven  wdio  devoutly  worship  God.  But  those 
wii'  be  cast  into  hell  wdio  refuse  to  be  baptized  and  will  not 
belie\  v'  in  the  one  God,  Creator  of  all  things,  namely,  idol- 
aters, wli'>  worship  wood,  stones,  animals,  and  all  those 
who  live  wicledly  and  die  in  sin. 

Dear  friends !  How  can  you  escape  eternal  death  un- 
less you  believe  and  live  rightly?  You  have  seen  mani- 
festly with  your  eyes  and  heard  with  your  ears  wdiat  great 
grace  the  Great  Spirit  has  sliow^n  to  this  deceased  little 
boy ;  and  why  ?  Because  he  desired  Baptism  so  ardently. 
Endeavor,  therefore,  to  accept  the  light  of  faith  as  He  did, 
that  you  may  be  numbered  amongst  the  children  of  God, 
as  He  is  now  inscribed  in  heaven  amongst  the  choirs  of 
the  blessed.  Have  pity  on  your  one,  only  soul,  created  by 
the  Great  Spirit,  and  renounce  your  darkness  and  blind- 
ness, all  of  you,  who  are  the  slaves  of  senseless  idolatry 
which  is  nothing  else  than  diabolical  deception  and  deceit. 
Thrown  the  dnun  into  the  fire,  the  drum  by  whose  sound 
vou  do  not  cease  day  and  night  to  summon  the  devil,  for 


1/  i  ■ 


II! 


BEV.  OTTO   SKOLLA. 


403 


10  die  ill 
er  a  few 
e  of  you 
'he  same 
[>  human 
Lway  out 
.  Their 
:y  in  the 
I  the  last 
ed.  But 
3  eternal 
d  eternal 

who  are 
^lieve  in 
)  died  on 

Finally, 
3ut  those 
I  will  not 
elv,  idol- 
all  those 

eatli  un- 
n  mani- 
lat  great 
ed  little 
u'dently. 
He  did, 
of  God, 
loirs  of 
eated  by 
d  blind- 
idolatry 
i  deceit, 
^e  sound 
evil,  for 


he  willingly  conies  to  thofjo  who  invoke  him.*  But  wool 
because  after  death  he  will  threw  their  souls  ir.to  hell  to 
burn  in  the  fire  forever. 

"But  you,  who  have,  been  baptized  in  Josi's  Christ,  per- 
severe until  death  in  doing  good  works  that  you  may  obtain 
from  the  hand  of  God  an  eternal  crown.  For  know  this, 
that  he  alone  is  truly  happy  who,  being  baptized,  Ix^lieves 
firmly  in  God,  loves  Ilini  and  serves  Ilini  faithfully  until 
death,  and  endeavors  in  all  his  actions  to  fulfill  the  holy 
will  of  God.  Certainly  he  that  lives  thus  and  does  what 
is  good  initil  the  end  of  his  life  will  die  in  the  Lord  and  be 
clothed  by  Him  in  heaven  with  a  golden  garment  and  re- 
joice forever  in  His  kingdom." 

This  sennon  was  listened  to  most  attentively  by  all 
present  and  left  a  deep  impression  on  their  minds.  A  few 
days  later  the  parents  and  relatives  of  the  deceased  boy, 
with  several  others,  asked  to  be  baptized.  During  his  three 
weeks'  stay  in  Fond  du  Lac  Father  Skolla  baptized  seven- 
teen pagans.  During  all  this  time  he  stopped  with  Francis 
Roussain,  who  treated  him  with  great  kindness.  The  lat- 
ter died  many  years  ago,  but  his  wife  and  two  sons  and 
daughter  still  reside  at  Fond  du  Lac.  A  brother  of  his, 
George  Roussain,  lives  at  Courtes  Oreilles,  and  is  an  ex- 
emplary Christian.    As  Skolla  noticed  that  provisions  were 

*Very  Rev.  Father  Jacker,  deceased,  gives  in  one  of  his  written 
lectures  a  specimen  of  an  Indian  incantation  song: 
"Nin  wawenabamigog  ehe!  ehe! 
Nind  igog  ehe!  ehe! 
Ogimag  ehe!  ehe!" 
These  same  words  are  repeated  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  or  even  for 
an  hour,  if  deemed  necessary.    The  meaning  is : 
"They  choose  me  ehe!  ehe 
They  tell  me  ehe !  ehe ! 
The  chiefs  ehe!  ehe!" 

When  F.  Jacker  asked  the  Indian,  whom  he  heard  singing  the  above 
words,  what  kind  of  chiefs  he  meant,  his  answer  was:  "I  do  not 
know,  perhaps  the  wicked  manitous"  ( devils ! ) 


I 


I 


* ' 


Mi: 


I 


j     'Hi 


\t-     '1 


I  '!' 


In    pi  I':   ' 


I  '  'i; 


404 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


becoming  scarce  with  liis  kincMiearted  host,  ho  set  out  to 
return  to  La  Pointe.  Althougli  the  pagan  Indians  on  the 
ishuid  of  La  l*ointo  were  strongly  attached  to  paganism, 
still  many  were  converted,  besides  others  who  came  from 
Courtos  Oreilles,  Lac  du  Flambeau,  Grand  Portage,  and 
Pigeon  River.  The  total  number  of  baptisms  in  all  his 
missions  at  La  Pointe  (1845  to  1853)  was  about  440. 

During  all  tho  eiglit  years  F.  Skolla  labored  at  La 
Pointe  ho  had  but  three  visits  of  brother  clergymen.  In 
1847  he  was  visited  by  Fathers  Baraga,  Pierz,  and  Chone, 
S.  J.  It  was  an  unusual  sight  to  the  good  people  of  La 
Pointe  he  had  but  three  visits  of  brother-clergymen.  In 
1847  he  was  visited  by  Fathers  Baraga,  Pierz,  and  Chone, 
with  Skolla  a  whole  month.  One  Sunday  they  had  a 
solemn  high  Mass  with  deacon  and  sub-deacon,  at  which 
F.  Chone  preached  an  eloquent  sermon. 

In  1849  F.  Skolla  was  twice  visited  by  Very  Rev.  Bou- 
langer,  S.  J.,  Provincial  of  his  Order.  The  first  time  he  re- 
mained but  a  short  time,  as  he  was  on  his  way  to  visit  the 
various  missionary  stations  of  his  Order  on  the  !Rorth 
Shore.  On  returning  from  this  official  visit  to  his  brethren 
in  Canada  he  stayed  with  Father  Skolla  tliree  weeks  and 
preached  a  most  eloquent  sermon,  which  made  a  deep  and 
lasting  impression  on  all  present. 

In  1853  many  of  the  inhabitan::s  of  La  Pointe  left 
their  beloved  island  and  moved  to  Sand  Lake  and  other 
parts  of  Minnesota,  in  obedience  to  instructions  from  the 
Indian  Department  at  Washington.  At  last  there  were 
but  ten  families  left.  Subsequently  many  of  them  re- 
turned. Seeing  his  Indians  thus  moving  away,  F.  Skolla 
wrote  to  Bishop  Ilenni,  of  Milwaukee,  to  give  him  some 
other  Indian  mission  in  his  diocese.  This  was  'lone.  He 
was  removed  to  the  Keshena  Reservation,  where  many  Me- 
nominee Indians  resided  at  that  time. 

On  October  9,*  1853^  he  left  La  Pointe,  amidst  the  sad 


*nr 


The  parish  record  says:     September  19th,  1853. 


M. 


REV.  OTTO  S  ROLL  A. 


405 


et  out  to 
IS  on  the 
aganisrii, 
mo  from 
;age,  and 
n  all  his 
40. 

3d  at  La 
[lien.  Ill 
d  Chone, 
)le  of  La 
men.  In 
id  Chone, 
jy  had  a 
at  which 

[lev.  Bou- 
ime  he  re- 
>  visit  the 
le  Xorth 
brethren 
'eeks  and 
deep  and 

(into  left 
nd  other 
from  the 
ere  were 
them  re- 
^.  Skolla 

im  some 
me.    He 

any  Me- 

the  sad 


cries  and  lamentation  of  his  poor  people,  who  tried  very 
hard  to  detain  him.  Ho  gave  them  his  parting  blessing 
and  embarked.  His  poor  Indians  were  never  again  to  seo 
him  in  this  workl.  He  first  went  to  :Mil\vaukee,  via  Saiilt 
Ste.  IMarie.  The  very  day  he  arrived  at  the  Sault,  Bishop 
Baraga  had  left  for  Europe,  and  so  F.  Skolla  did  not  have 
the  i)leasiire  of  meeting  his  beloved  eountryman.  He  con- 
tinued his  journey  and  arrived  at  ^lilwaukeo,  where  lie 
stayed  two  weeks  with  Bishop  Ilenni. 

By  way  of  Detroit  and  ^^lackinae  he  went  to  Green  Bay, 
where  he  remained  a  few  days  with  F.  Parodin.  He 
walked  to  Oconto  Iliver,  which  took  him  two  days.  Hia 
predecessor  in  the  ^fenominee  mission.  Rev.  Florimund 
Bonduel,  had  left  on  account  of  son» .  trouble  between  the 
Indians.  They  were  very  much  pleased  to  have  another 
priest  so  soon  and  secured  a  deserted  house,  repairing  it 
and  fitting  it  up  for  a  temporary  church;  they  likewise 
built  a  small  house  for  the  missionary. 

Here  F.  Skolla  labored  with  his  customary  zeal  and 
during  his  six  months'  stay  near  Stiles  he  baptized  150 
pagans.  With  the  help  of  some  of  his  people  he  translated 
the  Pater,  Ave,  Credo,  Confiteor,  and  act  of  contrition  into 
the  Menominee  tongue.  On  Sundays  the  Indians  used  to 
sing  during  holy  Mass  the  pious  hymns  they  had  learned 
in  Chippewa.  At  first  F.  Skolla  preached  to  them  in 
Chippewa,  and  although  their  knowledge  of  that  language 
v/as  somewhat  imperfect,  they  listened  to  him  with  great 
attentiiM),  striving  to  understand  what  was  being  preached 
to  them.  They  would  spend  a  great  part  of  the  evenings 
singing  pious  hymns,  in  which  exercise  they  tool:  special 
delight.  Happiness  was  depicted  on  ev^ery  face,  ihe  hap- 
piness which  had  its  origin  in  the  conscious  po^s(^ssion  of 
interior  peace  and  the  grace  of  God.  Brothe;;ly  love,  un 
feigned  kindness,  and  great  joy  reigned  an?ongst  tliose 
simple-hearted  children  of  the  forest.    In  reading  SkoUa's 


it 


!  fm 


m 


■^i":i^ 


406 


BIOGBAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


t!    :(' 


»i'' 


hlh 


Ml 


IJr 


m- 


iiir 


account  of  them  we  are  reminded  of  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians, "who  were  one  heart  and  one  soul." 

Speaking  of  his  Indians,  he  writes:  "'The  Menomi- 
nees  are  very  quiet  and  good-natured.  There  are  good, 
fervent  Christians  amongst  them.  They  hate  utoxicating 
liquors,  and  it  is  the  virtue  of  temperance  which  most 
powerfully  impels  them  to  embrace  the  Catholic  faith. 
They  dislike  forb.dden  pleasures  and  feastingb.  When 
they  have  an  enievtainment  they  observe  the  rules  of  sobri- 
ety, modesty  and  edification.  3Iy  Catholic  Indians  have 
only  one  ;/eat  banquet  during  the  year,  and  that  is  on 
Three  King's  day,  or  Epiphany.  The  chiefs  are  called 
''Ogimag'' — kings — in  Indian,  and  so  in  their  simple  way 
they  want  to  celebrate  the  feast  of  their  patron  saints,  the 
Three  Kings,  and  show  themselves  a  little.  Every  year  a 
chief  gives  an  entertainment,  to  which  his  relatives  con- 
tribute. Everything  passes  off  most  innocently  in  mutual 
love  and  kindness,  and  Indian  religious  songs  are  sung 
whilst  the  guests  are  eating." 

"On  the  10th  of  May,  1854,  the  government  superin- 
tendent, Dr.  Hubschmann,  came  to  Wolf  Eiver  Falls.  He 
Avrote  to  me  to  come  to  that  place  immediately  with  my 
Indians  in  order  to  deliberate  on  important  affairs  con- 
cerning the  Mv3nominees.  I  went  thither  immediately 
with  my  forest  children  and  we  w^re  received  by  him  very 
friendly.  lie  began  immediately  to  speak  to  the  people 
about  their  affairs  and  asked  me  to  interpret  in  Chippewa 
what  he  had  told  them  in  English,  which  I  did.  The  gov- 
ernment superintendent — most  likely  a  government  com- 
missioner— stayed  two  days  and  spoke  to  them  three  times 
in  iirder  to  explain  to  them  what  had  been  decided  on  con- 
cerning them  in  Washington.  The  United  States  agreed 
to  give  them  for  fifteen  years  a  saw  and  grist  mill,  a  black- 
smith and  carpenter,  and  two  schools  were  to  be  erec<:ed. 
The  agent  of  the  Menominees  will  soon  come  to  Wolf  River 
Falls  and  give  to  each  Menominee  family  a  piece  of  land 


lUL 


live  Cliris- 

e  Menomi- 
!  are  good, 
atoxicating 
vhicli  most 
lolic  faith, 
gb.  When 
ies  of  sobri- 
idians  have 
that  is  on 
are  called 
simple  way 
L  saints,  the 
very  year  a 
latives  con- 
^  in  nintual 
s  are  sung 

nt  snperin- 

Falls.    He 

y  with  my 

ITairs  con- 

nmediately 

y  him  very 

the  people 

Chippewa 

The  gov- 

inent  com- 

hree  times 

ed  on  con- 

ites  agreed 

11,  a  blaek- 

3e  erec<:ed. 

Yolf  River 

}ce  of  land 


KEV.  OTTO    SKOLLA. 


407 


for  cultivation.  The  chiefs  have  signed  their  names  and 
the  whole  matter  lias  been  forvv-ardcd  to  Washington  to  be 
ratified  bv  coni>Tess." 

In  a  letter  dated  Angiist  22,  185G,  F.  SkoUa  mentions 
that  he  went  to  ]\Lilwankce  to  sec  D.  llcnni  about  certain 
affairs  concerning  his  mission.  ]Ie  stayed  with  him  a 
week,  during  which  he  paid  a  visit  to  the  Salesianum. 
Fathers  ITeiss  and  Salzmann  received  the  Indian  mission- 
ary very  kindly  and  showed  him  the  Seminary,  which  then 
had  but  thirtv  students,  llavinu"  transacted  his  business 
with  his  bishop,  Father  Skolla  returned  to  Iveshena. 

The  first  church,  ''the  bark  church,"  was  built  in  1S54, 
near  Lake  Keshena,  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  east  of 
the  village  of  Keshena.  The  site  selected  by  Skolla  for 
his  mission  was  on  the  south  side  of  the  lake,  where  the 
shore  is  high  and  steep  and  commands  a  full  view  of  the 
lake  and  the  surroundin*;'  count r v.  He  induced  the  In- 
dians  to  build  a  small  church  and  parsonage  at  once.  Both 
buildings  were  very  primitive ;  no  floor  but  the  bare  ground 
and  the  roof  covered  with  bark ;  his  house  consisted  of  one 
room.  Xear  the  church  was  the  cemetery  (now  no  longer 
used),  where  about  one  hundred  lie  buried.  In  1850  the 
second  church  was  to  be  built  in  the  village  of  Keshena. 
From  Xovember,  1853,  until  August,  1850,  Father 
Skolla  baptized  302  Indians,  one  of  whom  was  an  old  chief 
far  over  100  vears  of  ase.  The  neoidiytes  were  full  of 
fe-.'vor;  erery  Sunday  from  twenty  to  thirty  received  holy 
Commiinion. 

To  promote  temperance  amongst  his  Indians,  Father 
Skolla  had  a  picture  hung  up,  depicting  the  evils  of  drink- 
ing and  the  beneficial  efi'ccts  of  temperance.  On  the  left, 
a  drunken  man  with  raaiied  clothes  is  seen  striking  his 
poor  wife  with  a  poker,  wnilst  she  is  clas])ing  to  her  breast 
her  poor  infant  child.  A  devil  with  a  diabolical  laugh  on 
his  ndv  face  reaches  to  him  a  iilass  of  brandv  taken  out  of 
a  jug  labeled,  ''Fourth  proof  brandy."    The  poor  children 


m 


■!!     ( 


408 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


i 


1 


^i\ 


Li, I 


>f'i! 


crowd  around  their  mother,  crying.  On  the  right  side  is 
seen  a  fine  gentleman  instructing  his  little  son.  A  young 
daughter  sits  at  a  table  full  of  nice  things  to  eat.  The 
happy  mother  holds  a  smiling  baby  on  her  lap  whom  she 
is  lovingly  caressing.  The  Indians  used  to  look  a  great 
deal  at  this  j:)icture,  which  made  a  deep  impression  on  their 
minds  and  induced  2G0  of  them  to  take  the  temperance 
pledge ;  eighty  took  it  for  life  and  kept  it  faithfully. 

xVlthough  a  man  of  great  sanctity,  Father  Skolla,  never- 
theless, became  the  victim  of  vile  slanders.  Some  malevo- 
lent, superstitious  Indians  used  to  lurk  about  his  poor,  lit- 
tle shanty,  watching  through  the  holes  and  cracks  in  the 
walls  everything  he  was  doing  inside.  lie  kept  a  cat  and 
would,  for  a  pastime,  play  with  it,  as  he  was  staying  all 
alone  and  had  no  one  with  whom  to  converse.  He  would 
then  talk  to  the  cat,  and  the  Indian  spies  outside  hearing 
him,  but  seeing  nobody  with  him  in  the  room,  were  con- 
vinced that  he  was  talking  to  ghosts.  In  a  similar  manner, 
when  they  saw  him  play  chess  alone,  as  it  is  said  he  did  at 
times,  they  imagined,  perhaps,  that  the  figures  on  the  chess 
board  were  bad  spirits  with  whom  the  Father  .lad  inter- 
course, or  that  the  white  figures  represented  the  whites 
and  the  dark  colored  ones  the  Indians ;  and  their  mutual 
struggle  on  the  board  typified  the  struggle  of  the  two  races 
for  the  mastery  of  the  land.  Moreover,  they  saw  him 
sometimes  in  the  evening  walking  in  the  grave  yard  or  en- 
tering the  church  to  pray.  It  is  said  that  he  spent  much  of 
his  leisure  time  praying  in  the  church.  This  pious  custom 
gave  rise  to  a  most  horrible  calumny.  He  was  charged 
with  opening  the  graves  at  night  and  taking  out  the  hearts 
of  newly  buried  corpses  to  make  out  of  them  "bad  medi- 
cine" for  injuring  people. 

This  charge  was  supported  by  an  old  pagan  Chip- 
pewa, who  was  on  a  visit  with  the  ^I(?nominee3.  This  In- 
dian knew  Fatlior  Skolla  and  came  one  day  to  see  him. 
Skolla  had  a  box  in  which  he  used  to  put  his  things.    The 


M 


ght  side  is 

A  young 

eat.     The 

whom  she 

3k  a  great 

m  on  their 

emperance 

illy. 

)lla,  never- 
tie  malevo- 
s  poor,  lit- 
cks  in  the 
a  cat  and 
itaying  all 
He  would 
le  hearing 
were  con- 
r  manner, 
he  did  at 
the  chess 
ad  incer- 
he  whites 
ir  mutual 
two  races 
saw  him 
rd  or  en- 
much  of 
s  custom 
charged 
e  hearts 
d  medi- 

Chip- 

his  In- 

ee  him. 

rs.    The 


i 

In 
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t : 


I     ii 


■i!n,:i: 


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\[  ''.i 


llii:  iSl 


F  .  ■    ■ 

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^ 

.-« 

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vJ 

Sk"   ■    *■■■'.' 

^:    ^  ^ 

K^ 

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5^  ^S 

• 

VERY  RE\'.  EDWARD  .f ACKER.  X.Ci. 


■li5;ifi. 


REV.  EDWARD   JACKER. 


409 


Chippewa  ^at  on  the  box,  and,  tapping  on  it  with  his  hand, 
said  to  his  companions:  ''This  box  contains  a  piece  of  dry 
flesli  which  the  priest  has  taken  from  the  body  of  a  dead 
person  to  nse  it  as  bad  medicine."  This  cahunnions  and 
stupid  story  was  repeated  all  over  the  reservation  and  be- 
lieved by  many  Indians,  especially  pagans.  One  day  a 
yonng  person  was  buried  and  the  miserable  charge  was 
made  again.  So  strong  was  the  sentiment  against  the 
priest  that  some  demanded  that  the  corpse  be  exhumed  and 
examined.  F.  Skolla  w^as  informed  of  Ihls.  lie  mildly 
said :  ''You  can  do  as  you  please,  but  b}'  doing  so  you  will 
only  hurt  yourselves."  The  disinterment  was  then 
omitted,  but  at  some  other  occasion  it  was  actually  done 
to  satisfy  curiosity.  It  is  easy  to  be  seen  that  such  cal- 
umnies must  have  been  a  areat  hindrance  to  his  missionary 
work,  as  tliev  created  feelin2;s  of  distrust  and  aversion 
against  the  priest,  the  more  so  as  many  Indians  were  very 
ignorant  and  superstitious.  At  first  a  small  sum  cut  of 
the  annuities  was  reserved  for  the  missionary's  si.pport. 
This  was  subsequently  withheld,  most  likely  on  account  of 
those  base,  lying  reports  circulated  about  him.  As  he  had 
no  ether  means  of  support,  he  was  obliged  to  leave  in  1857. 
It  seems  he,  shortly  after,  returned  to  his  monastery  in 
Carniola.  Ills  missionary  account  was  published  in  the 
Franciscan  monthly,  ''La  Palestina,"  in  ISOl.  From  a 
foot-note  in  tlie  February  number  It  appears  he  was  then 
still  alive  and  residing  at  the  monastery. 


'  I  ■*  w- 


VERY  REV.  EUWARD  JACKER. 

(DECEASEO.) 

OF  THE   DIOCESE  OF   MAlKiUETTE,  ]\[ICir.       A  SHOUT  SKETCH 

OF  HIS  LIFE  AND  LABOi  -  , 

Very  Rev.  E.  Jacker  was  born  September  2,  1827,  in 
Ellwangen,  Wurtend)erg.     His  parents  were  staunch,  de- 


'<!■ 


m\ 


'M  ! 


!  fill 


ini 


•t,'S:, 


410 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


voiit  Catholics.  ]Iis  father,  a  pious  aiul  most  conscien- 
tious man,  was  professor  at  the  Gymnasium  of  Ellwangen. 
He  ^vas  a  very  learned  man  and  author  of  some  works. 

Yonng-  J  acker  began  his  studies  at  the  gymnasium  of 
his  native  town.  A  classmate  of  his  and  his  r.'.ost  intimate 
friend  was  Dr.  T.  J.  Ilolzwarth,  subsequently  a  prominent 
German  writer  and  author  of  a  history  of  the  world. 

About  the  vear  18^0  J  acker  entered  the  Universiiv  of 

*^  *■' 

Tubingen  as  candidate  of  theology,  later  -hat  of  Munich, 
where  he  lOok  a  course  in  philosophy.  Uncertain  as  to  his 
vocation,  he  accepted  the  position  of  tutor  with  the  family 
of  Count  Grun^  at  liege,  Belgium,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained three  years,  improving  his  French  and  gaining  the 
love  of  his  pujiils.  Arthur,  one  of  the  Grunc  family,  sub- 
sequently became  i,n  attache  to  the  Austrian  Court.  He 
always  reinembercd  his  tutor  with  filial  aft'ection.  Either 
previous  to  or  after  nis  stay  in  Belgium,  Jacker  tempora- 
rily filled  the  v"  tncy  of  professorship  at  the  gymnasium 
of  his  birthi)lace  and  here  also  won  the  love  and  adraira- 
tion  of  the  students  attending  his  class. 

At  last  he  came  to  a  decision  regarding  his  vocation 
and  resolved  to  enter  the  Benedictine  Order.  He,  there- 
fore, went  to  fet.  Vincent's  Abbey,  Westmoreland  Co., 
Pa.,  in  the  spring  of  1854:,  and  at  his  adnrission  received 
the  name  of  Frater  Beda.  He  did  not  remain  there  long, 
however.  The  newly  consecrated  Bishop  Baraga  was  then 
looking  for  laborers  among  the  Indians  of  his  diocese,  and 
Jacker  at  once  and  enthusiastically  followed  this  call. 

He  was  ordained  in  1855  at  Satdt  Ste.  ]!\larie  and  >ent 
to  the  Indian  mission  of  L'Anse.  He  was  tlie  third  suc- 
cessor to  F.  Baraga  in  said  mission,  the  immediate  suc- 
cessor being  Ilev.  Angelus  Van  Paemel,  whose  name  ap- 
pears in  the  Ba])tismal  Record  of  said  mission  from 
August  7,  1853,  until  August  1,  1854.  The  next  priest  in 
L'Anse  was  Father  Limagie,  with  whom  the  writer  was 
personally  acquainted,  for  he  was  the  v^riter's  successor  in 


^^:m 


REV.  EDWAliD   JACKER. 


411 


!onse.ien- 


New  London,  Wis.,  in  ISOS  and  18G9.  Father  Liniagie, 
who  was  a  Belgian  by  birth,  was  stationed  at  L'Anse  from 
Angnst  4,  1854,  vintil  Augiist  12,  1855.  Then  came 
Father  Jacker  from  September  20,  1855,  to  April  3,  1861. 
He  stayeid  at  i/Anso  for  live  years  and  then  moved  to 
Honghton,  from  whicli  place  he  visited  the  mission  from 
time  to  time  until  1801. 

Father  Gerhard  Terhorst  arrived  in  'L'Anse  the  day 
before  Corpus  Christi,  1801,  and  has  ever  since  been  in 
charge  of  said  mission.  About  this  persevering  and  ener- 
getic Indian  missionary  the  writer  might  say  much  did  he 
not  know  his  dislike  of  public  notice  and  fear  to  wound  his 
well-known  modesty. 

At  L'Anse  F.  Jacker  soon  became  master  of  the  Chip- 
pewa language,  the  rudiments  of  which  he  had  acquired 
under  B.  Baraga's  guidance.  Fr  =  n  diis  place  he  also  at- 
tended the  new  mining  towns  aboiib  i*ortage  Lake,  where 
a  mixed  population  of  Irish,  French,  and  Germans  began 
to  form  congTegations.  Every  alternate  week  he  visited 
the  mines  thirty  miles  distant,  proceeding  thither,  accord- 
ing to  the  season,  either  on  snowshoes  or  in  a  frail  bark 
canoe.  He  would  then  preach  in  the  three  languages  and 
attend  to  the  manv  and  various  calls  of  his  holv  oliice. 

In  1801  Father  Jacker  was  removed  to  Hancock. 
During  his  long  stay  in  tliat  town,  especially  during  the 
first  years,  when  he  had  no  assistant,  he  was  overburdened 
with  work,  and  the  strain,  both  physical  and  mental,  was 
such  that  it  gradually  undermined  his  health  and  was  the 
(iause  of  his  premature  death.  In  a  letter  to  the  writer, 
his  brother,  Hon.  Fr.  Jacker,  says : 

"I  was  often  with  him  during  that  period  and  thus  had 
occasion  to  witness  some  of  the  trials  of  a  missionary's  life. 
After  hearing  confessions  up  to  a  late  liour  on  Saturday 
nights,  again  in  the  confessional  Sunday  mornings,  first 
low,  then  high  ]\Iass.  Hardly  having  put  aside  his  vest- 
ments, lie  Vvas  waylaid  at  every  door  by  crowds  of  parish- 


412 


BIOORAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


V 


ioners,  who  solicited  liis  attention  in  behalf  of  their  vari- 
ous concerns,  and  but  few  minutes  were  left  him  to  par- 
taJve  of  his  behited  dinner.  Neither  was  there  rest  for  him 
in  the  afternoon.  The  door  bell  was  kont  rinmnff  all  dav 
and  sometimes  in  the  middle  of  the  night  there  came  a  call 
demanding  his  immediate  presence  at  the  bed  of  a  person 
dying  miles  away. 

''Besides  these  pastoral  duties,  he  had  other  difficulties 
to  contend  with.  He  was  a  poor  laoney  collector  and  a 
still  poorer  financier.  His  too  confiding  and  trusting  na- 
ture M'as  at  times  abused  by  unscrupulous  persons. 
Though  his  parishioners  generously  contributed  to  his  sup- 
port, he  never  accumulated  any  monoy.  He  lived  and  died 
'poor! 

"When,  during  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  and  upon  his 
special  request,  he  was  again  pennitted  to  go  among  his 
dearly  beloved  Indians,  it  was  a  happy  change  for  him. 
.Vhile  coasting  along  the  western  shore  of  Lake  Michigan 
in  a  small  boat,  or  penetrating  the  interior  to  visit  the  scat- 
tered domiciles  of  the  "red  man"  in  out  of  the  way  places, 
he  found  'me  to  write  up  something  for  a  magazine  or  to 
collect  mat'M'ials  for  his  "hobby"  in  comparative  philology 
(if  the  attempt  to  find  proof  for  the  common  origin  of  man 
by  tracing  and  comparing  the  roots  of  words  in  diverse  lan- 
guages deserves  this  appellation),  thereby  making  good  use 
of  the  talent  given  him  by  his  Maker. 

"Besides  being  master  of  several  languages,  he  pos- 
sessed a  general  kno^\ledge  of  the  grammatical  construc- 
tion of  many  others,  i^erhaps  of  all  languages,  of  which 
even  an  analysis  in  print  has  been  attempted.  His  fre- 
quent marginal  notes  on  the  pages  of  linguistic  works, 
which  he  succeeded  to  accumulate  in  time,  seem  to  indi- 
cate this;  and  his  critical  remarks  in  this  respect  were  not 
superficial,  but  deep  and  of  fine  discrimination. 

"Of  his  death — he  never  took  to  bed  in  his  sickness  and 
breathed  \\h  last  in  a  chair — died  literallv  in  bis  boots. 


REV.  EDWARD   JACKER. 


413 


He  wrote  btters  to  his  frieiuls  and  relatives  up  to  tlie  last 
hours,  using"  a  lead  })encil  with  his  trembling  hand." 

The  writer  Avas  personally  acquainted  Avitli  Father 
Jacker  and  corresponded  with  him  a  great  deal  between 
1885  and  the  time  of  his  death.  These  letters  he  treasures 
"vvith  jealous  care  as  tokens  of  friendship  from  a  dearly 
beloved  friend.  F.  Jacker  assisted  the  writer  very  much 
when,  in  1886,  the  latter  was  writing  his  little  work,  "Mis- 
sionary Labors  of  Fathers  Marquette,  Allouez,  and  Menard 
in  the  Lake  Superior  Regie:.." 

Under  date  of  August  IG,  188G,  he  writes  as  follows: 

"Detour,  Mich.,  Aug.  16,  1866. 
Rev.  Father  Chnjsostom  Verwyst^  0.  S,  F.,  Bayfield,  Wis. 

Rev.  Deaiv,  Father — I  believe  I  was  the  last  to  write 
— some  time  in  May.  Possibly  a  missive  of  yours  went 
astray;  our  postal  arrangements  are  not  the  best;  people 
complain  that  letters  are  sometimes  lost.  We  have  a  dou- 
ble mail,  one  over  land  from  St.  Ignace,  one  by  boat  from 
Cheboygan,  and  both  are  irreg-ular. 

Should  it  be  possible  that  your  work  has  not  yet  come 
out  ?  I  am  anxiously  waiting  for  a  copy.  I  want  one  from 
your  hand;  as  many  more  as  I  may  need,  I  shali  order 
from  the  publishers. 

There  is  a  bare  possibility  that  I  may  run  up  to  see  you 
some  time  in  September,  Avhen  I  hope  to  get  as  far  as  Han- 
cock. It  wall  depend  on  the  amount  of  money  as  w-ell  as 
of  time  that  mav  be  at  mv  disposal. 

Father  Atfield,  of  Menonnnee,  invited  me  to  visit  the 
Indians  in  that  neighborhood.  As  most  of  them  are  Mc- 
nominees  and  some  know  but  little  Otchipwe,  I  advised 
him  to  apply  for  one  of  your  Fathers  in  Keshena.  If  he 
insists  on  my  coming,  I  think  I  shall  go  in  September,  as 
I  have  to  go  as  far  as  Escanaba,  anyhow.  For  that  pur- 
pose I  am  studying  the  works  of  your  Wamcinominewene- 
sit.    By  the  way,  where  is  he  at  present  ? 


I  ■ 


414 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


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ilJ 

Dotoiir  is  tlio  quietest  mission  I  have  ever  had.  Still, 
I  would  rather  bo  in  a  little  Indian  settlement,  so  as  to 
learn  the  languaiie  again.  If  the  collection  ordered  by  the 
Plenary  Council  anio  •  rs  to  something  handsome,  Bp. 
Vertin  may  yet  come  to  the  resolution  of  giving  me  such 
a  place.  Here  I  have  to  work  for  my  living — that  is,  I 
have  to  give  the  greater  part  of  the  year  to  those  that  g  •)- 
port  me,  and  to  the  Indians  a  few  weeks  now  and  then. 

liX}'  best  respects  to  Father  John.  I  hope  he  will  yet 
believe  in  vour  studies. 

In  unione  precnni, 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

E.  JACKER." 

The  reader  will  pardon  us  for  inserting  the  following 
testimonials  of  Father  Jacker's  worth  as  a  self-sacrificing 
priest  and  Indian  missionary.  They  come  from  all  direc- 
tions and  are  from  parties  who  were  well  acquainted  with 
this  saintly  man.  They  were  puldished  in  the  "Ohio 
Waisenfreund,"  of  Columbus,  Ohio,  under  date  of  Decem- 
ber 14,  1892. 

"'Thirty-seven  years  ago." 

The  editor  says : 

"Under  this  heading  we  published  the  letter  of  a  Ger- 
man-American priest  of  Michigan,  in  order  to  rescue  it 
from  oblivion,  but  we  did  not  know  the  name  of  the  writer. 
But  now  we  can  give  that,  too,  for  in  regard  to  this  pious 
priest  the  saying  is  truly  verified,  'His  memoiy  shall  be  in 
benediction,'  as  we  see  from  the  notices  which  we  have  re- 
ceived concerning  him.  The  name  of  this  long  ago  de- 
ceased priest  is  Edward  Jacker,  from  Ellwangen,  Wurtem- 
berg.  According  to  the  unanimous  testimony  of  our  corre- 
spondents this  priest  led  a  saintly  life  and  closed  a  career 
on  earth  for  which  God  will  have  given  him  the  crown  of 
life." 

A  correspondent  from  Minnesota  writes : 


REV.   EDWARD   JACKER. 


415 


^'Tlio  iinir.f  of  the  pr'cst  was  Edward  Jackor.  I  was 
^vc'll  acquiiiiitcd  with  him,  for  1  H<n'Vod  liis  ^lass  for  about 
four  v(>ars  on  Sundav??  and  wook  davs,  and  I  rwoivcd  from 
him  my  first  lioly  Communion,  and  I  can  to.'^tifv  of  him 
that  lie  was  tho  most  ])ious  priest  1  over  know.  'J'hat  was 
in  Hancock,  .Mich.,  to  which  place  ho  came  some  years  be- 
fore lis.  He  came  to  Hancock  like  a  beiroar,  his  clothes  all 
ragged  and  torn,  after  havino'  lived  manv  vears  amonu'st 
the  Indians.  Also  in  Hancock  he  alwavs  had  Indians  in 
his  house.  He  was  beloved  by  Catholics  and  Trotestants, 
for  he  M-as  goodness  itself.  About  five  vears  aao  I  received 
a  letter  from  him,  and,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  it  is  alx)ut 
three  years  ago  that  I  read  in  a  newspai)er  that  he  had  de- 
parted this  world  to  obtain,  no  doubt,  a  good  reward  from 
God.  Whether  he  was  from  Wurtemberg  I  do  not  know, 
but  I  am  sure  he  was  a  Suabian.  J.  W." 

From  ]\Iiehigan  one  writes : 

^'We  were  well  acquainted  with  the  writer  of  said  letter 
since  the  early  part  of  the  sixties,  and  his  memory  is  held 
in  the  highest  respect  by  all  those  who  were  ever  acquainted 
with  liim  on  our  peninsula,  regardless  of  creed.  The 
writer  was  Kev.  Father  Edward  Jacker,  who  died  five 
years  ago,  born  in  Ellwangen,  Wurtemberg,  on  September 
2,  1827,  and  deceased  at  Marquette,  ]\Iich.,  on  September 
1,  1887.  Three  days  later  he  was  consigned  to  eternal  rest 
in  Hancock,  according  to  his  wish,  in  the  cemetery  which 
he  himself  had  blessed  twenty-five  years  before. 

'T.  J.  W." 

Another  writes :  'That  priest  is  undoubtedly  the  cele- 
brated Father  Jacker,  who  not  long  ago  discovered  the 
grave  of  the  Frenchman  Marquette.  He  died  some  years 
ago.  He  was  a  man  whose  self-sacrificing  labors  remained 
unknown,  but  who  in  reality  v/as  a  remarkable  man  and 
priest.  It  is  certain  that  too  much  good  cannot  be  said  of 
him,  for  only  few^  are  his  equals.    It  is  to  be  regi'etted  that 


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Photographic 

Sdences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

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416 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


such  an  able  man  did  not  have  a  larger  field  foi-  his  capa- 
bilities, where  he  could  have  done  infinitely  more  good. 
It  is  to  be  regretted  that  men  like  Jacker  disappear  with- 
out being  known.  Could  his  deeds  and  life  be  written, 
they  would  be  a  source  of  consolation  to  many  and  an  in- 
citement to  perseverance  when  in  sorrow  and  want,  both 
of  which  he  had  superabundantly.  L.  H.'' 

Another  speaks  of  him  thus :  ''I  knew  him  personally 
and  have  called  him  to  a  dying  person  thirty  miles  away. 
I  do  not  believe  that  there  will  ever  come  a  priest  to  this 
part  of  the  country  and  do  what  he  did,  and  every  Catholic 
speaks  most  highly  of  him.  It  is  not  to  be  described  what 
he  suffered  among  the  Indians,  and  money  he  could  never 
Iceef,  for  he  (jave  every  cent  to  the  poor,  and  ivhen  he  was 
buried  not  a  cent  of  money  was  found  with  him." 


KEV.  LAUIIENCE  LAUTISCHAE. 

HIS   SHORT   MISSIONARY  CAREER  AND  SAD  DEATH. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  Rev.  Laurence  Lautischar 
(Slav.  Laiitizar),  was  born  on  the  11th  of  December,  1820, 
in  Srednjivrh,  near  Kranjska  Gora,  Carniola,  Austria. 
His  parents  were  pious  country  people,  who  brought  him 
lip  in  the  fear  of  God  and  in  the  practice  of  every  Christian 
virtue.  Being  a  child  of  gi'eat  promise,  very  talented  and 
pious,  his  parents  had  him  study  for  the  priesthood.  At 
the  Gymnasium  and  Seminary  of  Laibach,  where  hQ 
studied,  he  was  respected  and  beloved  by  his  professors 
and  fellow  students.  He  received  the  Sacrament  of  Holy 
Orders  August  3,  1845. 

After  his  ordination  he  was  sent  to  Treffen,  B.  Baraga's 
bii*tliplace,  where  he  labored  in  the  capacity  of  assistant 
pi-iest  from  1846  to  1851.  He  was  then  transferred  to 
Dobrova,  near  Laibach,  in  which  to\vn  there  is  a  very  cele- 
brated shrine  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary  much  frequented 


REV.  LAURENCE   LAUTISCHAR. 


417 


by  pilgrims  from  far  and  near.  F.  Lautischar  labored  here 
likewise  as  assistant  priest  from  1851  to  1854.  In  both 
places  he  worked  zealously  in  the  confcvssional  and  pulpit 
for  the  salvation  of  souls. 

Kt.  Rev.  Frederic  Baraga  having  been  consecrated  on 
!N'ovember  1,  1853,  Bishop  of  Amyzona  and  Vicar-Apos- 
tolic of  Upper  Michigan,  went,  soon  after  his  consecration, 
to  Europe  in  quest  of  priests  and  funds  for  his  diocese. 
He  came  to  Camiola  and  was  everywhere  received  with 
great  respect  by  his  countrymen,  who  from  all  sides  flocked 
together  to  see  and  hear  the  beloved  bishop,  whose  fame  as 
a  great  Indian  missionary  had  preceded  him.  Several  Sla- 
vonian and  German  priests  offered  themselves  for  the 
American  mission,  and  one  of  them  was  F.  Lautischar. 

On  the  lOtli  of  May,  1854,  he  bid  a  tearful  farewell 
to  his  dear  mother  and  relatives  and  set  out  for  America. 
After  a  stormy  voyage  he  arrived  in  New  York  on  the  14th 
of  July,  1854.  He  remained  at  Sault  Ste.  ^[arie  a  short 
time  with  B.  Baraga  and  then  was  sent  to  La  Croix  to  act 
as  assistant  priest  to  Rev.  Father  Mrak.  In  June,  185G, 
he  was  put  in  charge  of  Arbre  Croche,  where  he  labored 
humbly,  unostentatiously  and  zealously  until  the  early  part 
of  1858. 

As  the  Indian  missions  of  Michigan  were  in  a  good, 
flourishing  condition,  F.  Lautischar  thought  he  might  do 
more  good  if  he  w^ent  to  labor  amongst  the  pagan  Indians, 
who  were  in  greater  need  of  a  missionary  than  the  good 
people  of  Arbre  Croche.  So  he  began  to  correspond  about 
the  matter  with  his  countryman,  Rev.  Father  Pierz,  who 
was  then  stationed  at  Crow  Wing,  Minnesota.  The  latter 
rejoiced  at  the  prospect  of  getting  a  good  assistant  to  help 
him  in  his  large  missionary  field.  Bishop  Baraga  con- 
sented to  give  F.  Lautischar  the  "exeat"  from  his  diocese 
and  he  was  received  by  the  Very  Rev.  Administrator  of 
St.  Paul  diocese,  the  Episcopal  See  having  become  vacant 
by  the  death  of  Rt.  Rev.  Joseph  Cretin  on  February  22, 


■■;l      "! 


I    L^h- 


I  t|        i| 


!|l! 


!'l!l 


! 


418 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


1857.  Traveling  by  way  of  Milvvaukeo,  Prairie  du  Chien, 
and  St.  Paul,  from  St.  Paul  to  Crow  Wing,  a  distance 
of  160  miles,  he  traveled  by  stage.  He  was  welcomed  with 
open  arms  by  good  Father  Pierz.  The  latter  was  as  poor 
"as  a  church  mouse ;"  he  had  not  a  cent  of  money,  but,  for- 
tunately, Fatlier  Lautischar  had  eighty  dollars  left  after 
paying  his  traveling  expenses.  This  sum  of  money  was 
truly  a  God-send  for  the  intended  missionary  trip  to  Red 
Lake,  where  F.  Lautischar  was  to  be  stationed  in.  the  verv 
heart  of  paganism. 

With  the  money  brought  by  Lautischar  the  necessary 
outfit  for  tlie  intended  journey  was  procured.  This  outfit 
consisted  of  a  couple  of  large  tents  for  the  missionaries  and 
their  Indian  guides  and  carriers,  cooking  utensils,  flour, 
pork,  and  tea,  lx}sides  the  necessary  church  vestments,  mis- 
sal, chalice,  etc.  Moreover,  some  of  the  money  was  used 
for  paying  the  Indians  and  half-breeds  who  were  to  act  as 
guides  and  carriers.  All  being  duly  prepared,  tlie  mission- 
aries and  their  Indian  companions  set  out  from  Crow  Wing 
on  foot.  We  do  not  know  the  exact  distance  from  Crow 
Wing  to  Red  Lake,  but  looking  at  the  map  of  Minnesota 
we  should  judge  it  to  be  about  250  miles,  perhaps  more, 
by  the  way  the  missionaries  had  to  travel  on  a  zig-zag  In- 
dian trail,  around  swamps  and  lakes  and  hills. 

They  arrived  at  Red  Lake  on  the  14th  of  August,  after 
many  hardships  and  sufferings,  of  which  not  the  least  was 
the  tormen*  endured  day  and  night  from  clouds  of  mos- 
quitoes which  infest  the  woods  and  swamps  and  drive  the 
,  poor  traveler  almost  mad.  Well  does  the  writer  remem- 
ber his  trip  of  seven  miles  through  a  Minnesota  forest,  or 
rather  swamp,  on  his  way  to  an  Indian  village.  To  walk 
was  out  of  question;  had  he  done  so  the  hungry,  blood- 
thirsty mosquitoes  would  have  eaten  him  alive.  So 
he  had  to  run,  as  fast  as  his  legs  could  ca^ry  him, 
through  thick  and  thin,  through  mud  and  slush,  knocking 
incessantly  right  and  left  with  a  large  handful  of  leaves 


j^ 


REV.  LAURENCE   LALTTISCHAR. 


419 


and  branches  to  keep  the  pests  from  flyin;^  into  his  eyes 
and  mouth  and  nose.  Even  then,  after  all  his  exertions, 
after  battling  with  the  foe  for  almost  two  hours,  his  neck 
and  wrists  were  all  red  and  swollen  from  mosquito  bites. 
We  can  then  imagine  what  the  poor  missionaries  must  have 
endured  on  their  long  trip  to  the  Indian  country.  We 
verily  believe  there  are  more  mosquitoes  in  one  township 
of  Northern  Minnesota  than  in  the  whole  state  of  Missouri. 

On  the  15th  of  August,  the  feast  of  the  Assumption  of 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  the  missionaries  offered  up  the 
holy  Sacrifice  of  the  Mass  on  the  shores  of  Red  Lake. 
After  a  stay  of  six  weeks,  F.  Pierz  returned  to  Crow  Wing,' 
leaving  Lautischar  to  work  at  Red  Lake.  The  latter 
stopped  with  a  French  half-breed  by  the  name  of  Pierrish, 
which  in  the  Chippewa  language  is  the  word  for  Peter,  and 
would  mean:  Bad  Peter.  He  was  very  kind  to  Father 
Lautischar,  who  made  his  home  with  him  and  used  hia 
house  as  a  chapel.  The  good  missionary  was  assiduous  in 
giving  instructions  to  both  Catholics  and  pagans.  At  his 
arrival  he  found  but  ten  half-breed  Catholic  families  on 
the  reservation.  They  had  been  baptized  many  years  ago 
by  B.  Baraga  at  Lalie  Superior,  but  had  forgotten  almost 
everything  about  religion.  The  Indians  liked  the  young, 
warm-hearted,  zealous  missionary  and  listened  eagerly  to 
his  instructions.  In  a  short  time  he  had  converted  several 
Indians  and  half-breeds. 

But  his  missionary'-  labors  came  to  a  short  and  sad  end. 
At  the  invitation  of  some  Indians  living  on  the  other  side 
of  the  lake,  he  went  to  see  and  instr  icc  them  on  December 
3,  1858.  When  he  got  through,  he  started  to  return,  al- 
though it  was  towards  evening  and  a  fearful  blizzard  was 
raging.  The  poor  Father  became  blinded  by  the  flying 
snow  and  sleet,  so  that  he  could  not  see  whither  he  was  go- 
ing. Moreover,  he  was  too  thinly  clad  for  the  rigorous 
cold  of  a  Minnesota  winter.  After  wandering  about  on  the 
open  lake  in  the  dark  night  and  blinding  storm  he  finally 


ni ! 


[•*!.  •! 


!   1!' 


li 


420 


BIOOBAPHICAL  BKETCHE8. 


succumbed  to  tho  cold.  His  legs  froze  and  so  he  could  no 
longer  walk.  After  crawling  around  for  some  time  on  the 
ice  he  finally  lay  down  and  died.  Like  St.  Francis  Xavier, 
whose  death  occurred  on  the  3d  of  December,  in  the  great- 
est poverty,  misei*y  and  abandonment,  so  Father  Lautischar 
likewise  died  in  darkness,  misery  and  cold,  without  the 
consolations  of  religion  in  his  last  hour.  We  can  imagine 
the  sufferings  and  agony  of  the  poor  Father  dying  all  alone 
in  that  dark  night  out  on  the  lake.  But  we  may  be  sure 
that  he  made  good  use  of  his  last  moments  to  prepare  for 
death,  oifering  the  sacrifice  of  his  young  life  to  God  for 
the  salvation  of  the  poor  Indians,  for  whose  sake  b  had 
left  Fatherland  and  parents  to  perish  in  trying  to  bring 
them  to  God. 

There  was  great  lamentation  and  sadness  when,  next 
morning,  they  found  their  dear  Father  dead,  frozen,  out  on 
the  lake,  not  far  from  the  place  on  the  shore  where  the  mis- 
sion house  stood.  After  some  days  the  good  Indians  de- 
cided to  take  the  corpse  to  Crow  Wing  for  burial.  The 
only  conveyance  they  had  was  a  dog-train,  on  which  they 
tied  the  box  or  coffin  containing  the  Father's  mortal  re- 
mains. 

When  they  aiTived  at  Crow  Wing  it  was  about  Christ- 
mas— a  sad  Christmas  indeed  for  poor  F.  Pierz,  who  had 
thus  suddenly  lost  his  dear  reverend  assistant  and  friend. 
His  only  consolation  was  that,  the  deceased  having  ended 
his  pious  and  self-sacrificing  life  in  the  service  of  God,  and 
working  for  the  poor  Indians,  his  soul  was  happy  in 
heaven,  praying  for  the  conversion  of  his  poor  people.  He 
was  buried  at  Crow  Wing  on  December  26,  1858,  in  the 
cemetery  adjoining  the  church.  A  wooden  Cross  was  put 
on  his  grave. 

Writing  to  his  reverend  friend.  Dean  S.  Vilfau,  at 
Novomesto,  Camiola,  about  Father  Lautischar's  untimely 
death,  F.  Pierz  says : 

"I  have  to  inform  you,  most  sorrowfully,  that  the 


BEV.   LAURENCE  LAUTISOEAR. 


421 


learned  and  pious  Laurence  Lautischar  is  no  more.  He 
entered  a  better  life  because  the  world  was  not  worthy  of 
him.  On  the  day  of  St.  Stephen  I  solemnly  buried  him  in 
Crow  Wing.  He  froze  to  death  while  coming  from  his  mis- 
sion. Undoubtedly  he  is  one  of  the  many  saints  in  heaven. 
He  offered  to  God  the  great  gift  of  self-denial  in  choosing 
to  leave  Bishop  Baraga  in  order  to  go  into  the  wilderness 
after  poor  Indians.  He  left  his  dear  mother,  relatives,  and 
many  friends  to  increase  his  merit  before  God.  In  Arbre 
Croche  he  did  much  good  during  his  three  years'  stay  there. 
All  praised  him  for  his  great  piety  and  many  virtues  which 
adorned  him  so  abundantly.  That  mission  was  too  small 
for  his  Apostolic  zeal  and  for  this  reason  he  wrote  to  me. 
I  was  very  glad  to  get  him.  Being  one  in  mind  and  soul 
with  me,  strong  and  always  ready  to  work,  we  started  on 
foot  from  Crow  Wing  for  the  upper  countiy  along  the  Mis- 
sissippi. After  a  journey  of  three  days,  amid  great  hard- 
ships, we  came  to  Leech  Lake,  Ga-Sagaskwadjimekag, 
where  1,400  Indians  awaited  us.  We  remained  eight  days 
with  them,  preached  to  them,  and  cured  the  sick  with  my 
homeopathic  medicines.  They  listened  with  great  at- 
tention to  us  and  many  assured  us  that  they  would  become 
converts.  Their  chiefs  promised  to  do  all  they  could  for 
us,  if  we  would  but  stay  with  them,  ^ 

"We  walked  four  days  more  and  finally  reached  my 
last  station — Red  Lake.  Here  we  found  ten  families  of 
half-breeds;  some  of  them  had  been  converted  by  Bishop 
Baraga.  We  gave  instructions  to  the  Indians  for  six  weeks 
and  baptized  many  of  them.  Our  dear  Laurence  under- 
stood my  way  of  acting  with  the  Indians  admirably  and 
he  preached  in  the  Indian  language  in  such  an  humble  and 
endearing  tone  that  I  could  not  help  admiring  him.  He 
was  dear  to  all. 

"The  holy  season  (of  Advent  and  Christmas)  waa  ap- 
proaching and  duty  called  me  to  the  whites  to  give  them  an 
opportunity  to  receive  the  holy  sacraments.    I  gave  to  my 


f     i 


w 


SI  * 


!  l«  i 


n  11 


422 


BIOQRAFHIGAL   8SBT0HES. 


assiaUnt  the  choice  eitlier  to  stay  at  Red  Lake,  or  go  to 
some  other  mission  during  winter,  or  go  with  me  to  Crow 
Wing  and  stay  with  me  there.  He  preferred  to  stay  at  Red 
Lake  that  he  might  do  more  good.  I  did  not  oppose  him. 
At  the  same  time  I  gave  him  the  good  advice  not  to  leave 
home  and  go  to  some  far-off  mission  during  winter. 

"At  last  we  sadly  parted  aiid  I  went  to  Crow  Wing.  I 
was  just  with  tJie  French  at  Belle  Prairie  when  I  received 
the  dispatch  with  the  sad  news  that  my  dear  assistant  had 
been  found  frozen  on  Red  Lake.  Immediately  I  took  the 
proper  steps  to  have  his  precious  remains  brought  to  Crow 
Wing  for  burial.  His  sudden  death  has  brought  the  deep- 
est sorrow  t>o  my  heart  and  I  have  shed  many  tears.  The 
thought  that  he  is  certainly  of  the  number  of  those  who 
pray  before  the  throne  of  God  for  the  poor  Indian  mission- 
aries and  their  flocks  has  consoled  me  for  a  moment. 

,  "He  had  been  told  that  on  the  other  side  of  the  frozen 
lake  there  were  a  large  number  of  natives  who  wanted  to 
see  him.  He  started  on  foot,  alone,  and  never  thinking  of 
any  impending  danger.  As  he  was  returning  home,  to- 
wards the  evening,  the  bitter  north  wind  was  blowing  hard ; 
the  messenger  of  Christ  was  to  be  the  victim.  Thus  his 
pure  soul  went  amid  prayer  and  suffering  to  heaven.  Not 
only  in  Red  Lake,  but  also  in  Crow  Wing,  the  Christians 
and  savages  mourned  the  death  of  their  beloved  priest  for 
many  days. 

"As  to  me,  nothing  can  replace  the  loss  of  him  and  my 
soul  is  in  the  greatest  sorrow,  though  he  died  a  happy  death. 
I  have  planted  on  the  grave  of  my  dear  friend  a  white 
Cross,  which,  though  wooden,  is  blessed  and  moistened 
with  my  tears.  It  will  stand  till  I  will  be  able  to  procure 
a  more  respectable  monument  for  the  eternal  remembrance 
of  my  dear  missionary  companion." 

The  venerable  missionary  composed  a  poem  in  the  Sla- 
vonian language,  in  which  he  describes  the  great  virtues 
and  noble  qualities  of  the  lamented  Father.     Some  years 


or  go  to 
to  Crow 
7  at  Red 
ose  him. 
to  leave 

• 

Ving.  I 
received 
:ant  had 
took  the 
to  Crow 
lie  deep- 
's. The 
Me  who 
nission- 

}  frozen 
luted  to 
king  of 
>me,  to- 
g  hard ; 
hus  his 
1.  Not 
ristians 
iest  for 

ind  my 
^  death. 
L  white 
istened 
)rocure 
ibrance 

he  Sla- 
virtues 
>  years 


I  I  i  * 


t§:v! 

m 


■    (;, 


m 


I: 


S'' 


rsmwmm 


I    I 


'(<    ,. 


■ 


;• 


]{K\'.  FATIIKH  VAN  DKN  MKOKK.  O.P. 


-I  - 


i  . 


THEODORE  J.  VAN  DEN  BBOEK,  O.  P. 


423 


ago  his  remains  wore  taken  to  Duliith  and  buried  in  the 
cemetery  lot  resoiTod  for  deconsed  priests. 


TITEODORE  J.  VAN  DEN  BROEK,  O.  P. 


ONE  OF  THE  PIONEER  INDIAN  MISSIONARIES  OF  WISCONSIN. 
SHORT  SKETCHES  OF  HIS  LIFE  AND  LABORS. 

Father  Theodore  J.  Van  den  Broek,  O.  P.,  was  a  Hol- 
lander by  bii-th  and  stationed  for  some  time  in  Alkmaar, 
Holland.  He  left  his  native  land  in  1832,  and  having 
landed  at  Baltimore,  ho  went,  via  Wheeling,  Cincinnati, 
and  Louisville,  to  St.  Rose,  near  Springfield,  Washington 
County,  ]Centucky,  where  there  was  a  house  of  the  Domini- 
can Order,  to  which  he  belonged.  The  whole  journey  from 
Antwerj),  Belgium,  to  St.  Rovse,  took  nine  weeks.  Here  he 
prepared  himself  for  missionary  work,  studying  the  lan- 
guage and  customs  of  the  counti*y.  After  a  short  stay  at 
St.  Rose,  he  was  removed  to  Somerset,  Perry  County, 
Ohio,  where  there  was  another  house  of  his  Order. 

On  the  4th  of  July,  1834,  he  aiTived  in  Greeti  Bay  to 
labor  in  the  Indian  missionary  field.  Here  he  found  only 
ten  Catholic  white  families,  although  more  were  living  in 
the  interior  of  the  state  at  Little  Chute,  Butte  des  Morts, 
etc.  He  completed  the  priest's  house,  begun  by  F.  Mazzu- 
chelli,  and  labored  zealously  among  the  whites  and  Indians 
©f  his  flock.  The  Catholic  church  and  parsonage  were  then 
located  at  Menomineeville  (Shanteetown),  half  way  be- 
tween Green  Bay  and  Depere.  Scarcely  a  year  after  his 
arrival  the  towns  of  Navarino  and  Astor,  now  Green  Bay, 
were  built,  and  as  the  Catholics  of  these  places  formed  one 
congregation  with  those  of  Menomineeville,  we  will  call 
the  mission  Green  Bay. 

The  first  building  in  Green  Bay,  used  as  school  house 
and  chapel,  was  built  of  logs  in  1823,  during  or  shortly 


424 


BIOGRAPU.'^AL  SKETCHES. 


I  . 


Mi ; 


Sl\     '. 


after  Fathor  Oiibriol  Richards'  visit  to  tliat  town.  The 
Catholics  of  that  place  had  not  seen  a  Catholic  priest  for 
fifty  years.  Father  Kichard  did  an  iininenso  anioiuit  of 
good  during  the  week  he  spent  with  them,  baptizing  128 
persons  and  marrying  twenty-six  couples.  The  church, 
begun  in  1823,  was  finished  under  the  care  and  supervi- 
sion of  Father  Badin  and  blessed  by  him  on  June  20,  1825. 
This  log  church  was  destroyed  by  fire  that  very  same  year. 
In  1831  Bishop  Fenwick,  of  Cincinnati,  selected  a  site  for 
a  new  church,  which  was  begun  by  Rev.  S.  Mazzuchelli, 
and  finished  by  the  Redemptorist  Fathers  Siinderl  ani 
Hiitscher  in  November,  1832,  at  a  cost  of  $3,000.  This 
church  was  also  destroyed  by  fire  in  1840.  Another 
church,  bought  of  the  Methodists,  shared  the  same  fate  in 
1871, 

Father  Van  den  Broek  labored  at  Green  Bay,  some- 
times alono  and  sometimes  with  Father  Mazzuchelli,  from 
1834  till  the  winter  of  1830.  It  seems  he  left  Green  Bay 
in  December  of  the  last  named  year  and  went  to  reside  at 
Little  Chute.  As  the  Redemptorist  Fathers,  Siinderl, 
Hiitscher,  and  Prost,  remained  in  Green  Bay  but  a  short 
time — Father  Siinderl  succeeding  F.  Baraga  in  Arbre 
Croche  in  1833 — the  care  of  the  Green  Bay  mission  again 
devolved  upon  Father  Van  den  Broek  for  tlie  next  two 
years,  1830  to  1838.  He  was  accustomed  to  have  Mass 
there  every  other  Sunday.  While  residing  in  Green  Bay, 
he  sometimes  said  two  Masses  on  Sundays,  the  first  one  at 
Green  Bay  and  the  second  at  Little  Chute,  walking  the 
entire  distance  (twenty  to  twenty-four  miles).  Once  his 
feet  bled  profusely  from  the  pegs  in  his  boots,  whence  he 
■was  obliged  to  stop  on  his  way  to  have  them  extracted. 
Another  time  he  lost  his  boots  in  the  deep  nmd.  Besides 
the  hardships  endured  in  his  travels,  he  had  often  to  suffer 
hunger,  as  his  Indians  were  rather  negligent  in  providing 
for  his  wants. 

When  he  first  came  to  Little  Chute,  he  lived  for  half 


THKODORB   J.  VAN    1)BN    RROEK,  O.  V. 


425 


a  year  in  a  wigwam,  fifteen  feet  lon^  and  six  feet  hij^li, 
which  Aorved  us  eliureh,  dwelling,  aiid  sehool.  As  soon  as 
he  had  baptized  Home  Indians  lio  btigiui  to  teaeli  thoni  to 
read  Jiishop  Bartiga's  prayer  and  eatecJietical  l)ooks. 
Here  in  liis  wigwam  lie  was  visited  by  snakes,  wolves,  and 
those  worst  of  all  nuisianees,  starving  Inditui  dogs,  who 
would  often  steal  the  poor  Father's  din?ier,  stowed  away, 
in  the  shape  of  meat  or  tish,  in  some  old  Indiiui  ketthi. 

His  mission  for  s  uo  years  eird)raeed  a  very  large  part 
of  Wisconsin,  lie  attended  Green  liay,  Little  Chute,  ITol- 
landtown,  liutte  des  Morts,  Fort  Wiiuiebago,  Fond  du 
Lac,  Prairie  du  Chien,  l*oygan,  (Jaluniet,  and  other  places. 
lie  visited  the  more  distant  missions  generally  in  winter. 
Oftentimes  he  was  obliged  to  sleej),  during  bitter  Jold  win- 
ter nights,  in  the  snow,  with  no  other  roof  overhead  than 
the  staiTy  cano])y  ol  neaven.  Once,  when  called  to  attend 
a  sick  person,  about  240  miles  distant,  he  got  lost  in  the 
woods,  his  guide  having  got  drunk  at  a  fort,  where  the 
Father  had  stopped  over  Sunday  to  give  the  Catholic  sol- 
diers a  chance  to  attend  to  their  religious  duties.  After 
riding  about  for  several  hours  in  the  dark  through  the 
woods,  having  lost  his  way,  he  finally  tied  his  horse  to  a 
tree,  took  off  the  saddle  and  used  it  for  a  pillow  on  which 
to  rest  his  aching  head.  Rain  fell  in  torrents  and  howling 
wolves  were  in.  close  proximity.  Next  morning  he  said 
his  prayers  and  made  a  vow  that  he  would  offer  up  a  holy 
Mass  in  thanksgiving  should  he  find  his  way  out  of  the 
woods.  In  those  days  Wisconsin  was  almost  one  unbroken 
forest  and  to  get  lost  in  such  a  wilderness  was  a  most  dan- 
gerous predicament.  After  having  prayed  most  fervently 
to  Almighty  God  for  deliverance  from  the  great  danger  to 
which  his  life  was  exposed,  he  mounted  his  horse,  let  the 
reins  loose  and  allowed  the  animal  to  go  whithei'soever 
Divine  Providence  might  direct  it.  In  less  than  five  min- 
utes he  was  on.  the  road  and  soon  arrived  at  the  sick  per- 


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426 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKBTCHES. 


son's  house.    Incidents  like  these  give  the  reader  some  idea 
of  the  hardships  this  Apostolic  man  endured. 

Father  Van  den  Broek  was  not  only  a  missionary ;  he 
was  also,  like  his  illustrious  fellow  laborer  in  the  Lake 
Superior  country,  F.  Baraga,  a  civilizer  of  his  Indian  peo- 
ple, who  were  mostly  Menominees.  He  worked  most  in- 
dustriously himself,  and  digging  his  garden  with  hoe  and 
spade,  raised,  the  first  year  he  came  to  Little  Chute,  plenty 
of  com  and  potatoes.  The  second  year  he  cultivated  a  suf- 
ficient quantity  of  breadstuffs  besides  vegetables,  his  In- 
dians helping  him  with  a  good  will  to  till  the  ground.  He 
also  trained  them  to  handle  carpenter  tools,  made  them 
masons,  plasterer  s,  etc.  With  their  help  he  erected  a  neat 
church,  seventy  feet  long,  with  a  nice  little  steeple,  which  he 
completed  in  1839  and  dedicated  to  St.  John  Nepomuc,  the 
glorious  martyr  who  gave  his  blood  for  the  inviolability  of 
the  seal  of  Confession.  The  writer  has  been  in  this  church 
more  than  once  and  within  its  hallowed  walls  he  received 
the  holy  Sacrament  of  Confirmation  from  Bishop  Henni 
in  1857.  If  his  memory  serves  him  right,  the  following 
inscription  was  to  be  seen  over  the  church  door : 

"In  this  Bolitary  wilderness,  au  unexplored  region, 
Father  Van  den  Broek  came  to  establish  religion." 

Between  1834  and  1842  F.  Van  den  Broel-'  converted 
ar  i  baptized  more  than  six  hundred  Indians,  not  to  speak 
of  those  he  converted  between  the  last  named  year  and  that 
of  his  death,  1851. 

But  Father  Van  den  Broek  has  not  only  a  claim  to  the 
grateful  remembrance  of  the  Catholics  of  Wisconsin  as  a 
zealous  Indian  missionary,  but  also  as  an  originator  of 
Catholic  colonization.  On  the  29th  of  May,  1847,  he  left 
Little  Chute,  and  crossing  the  broad  Atlantic,  visited  his 
native  land,  Holland.  The  same  year  he  published,  at 
Amsterdam,  a  pamphlet,  describing  some  of  the  many  ad- 
vantages Wisconsin  held  out  to  the  industrious  immigrant, 


THEODOBE  J.  VAN  DEN  BBOEK,  0.  P. 


427 


and  induced  many  of  his  countrymen  to  settle  in  our  state. 
Three  ships  Avith  Hollanders  sailed  for  America  in  1848, 
in  two  of  which  were  Catholic  priests  to  attend  to  the  spir- 
itual wants  of  tlieir  countrymen,  namely,  Fathers  God- 
hard,  O.  S.  F.,  and  Van  den  Broek,  O.  P.  The  latter 
sailed  from  Rotterdam,  March  18,  1848,  in  the  "Maria 
Magdalena."  He  landed  at  New  York  May  7,  and  arrived 
at  Little  Chuto  June  7,  with  a  large  number  of  Ilollandish 
immigrants.*  Among  those  who  left  their  country  on  that 
occasion  was  Hon.  Mr.  Wigman,  for  many  years  president 
of  the  Catholic  Knights  of  Wisconsin,  a  lawyer  of  great 
reputation  and  a  practical  and  devout  Catholic,  who  re- 
sides at  Green  Bay;  William  A.  Verboort — afterwards 
Father  Verboort — first  resident  priest  of  Depere  (died  in 
Oregon),  and  the  Avriter,  then  a  boy  of  six  and  a  half  years, 
came  over  that  same  time.  These  immigrants  from  Hol- 
land settled  at  Little  Chute,  HollandtoAvn,  Green  Bay,  De- 
pere, Freedom,  and  other  localities.  They  were  soon  fol- 
lowed by  others,  and  at  present  form  quite  a  large  percent- 
age of  the  Catholic  population  of  the  Green  Bay  diocese. 
They  are  second  to  none  in  strong,  practical  Catholicity, 
zeal  for  their  church,  religion,  and  schools,  and  command 
the  respect  of  all  classes  of  our  people  by  tlieir  industry, 
thrift,  and  orderly  conduct.  The  tree  that  Father  Van 
den  Broek  planted  at  Little  Chute,  in  1848,  has  spread  its 
branches  over  a  large  part  of  Northeastern  Wisconsin,  and 


*Rev.  Father  Godhart,  0.  S.  F.,  arrived  in  Hollandtown  on  the 
8th  of  June,  1848.  The  following  were  the  first  settlers  of  said  town: 
Henry  Gerrits,  Albert  van  den  Berg,  Jan  Verboord,  Johannes  Tiele- 
mans,  Martinus  Verkuilen.  The  writer  is  personally  acquainted  with 
all  of  them.  Some  of  them,  perhaps  all,  came  over  from  Holland 
with  him  on  the  same  ship.  As  Father  Godhart  was  a  Franciscan, 
he  made  St.  Francis  of  Assisium  the  Patron-Saint  of  the  church  and 
congregation  he  was  organizing;  hence  the  name,  "Franciscus-Busch," 
by  which  the  settlement  was  known  amongst  the  Hollandish  Catholics 
of  that  part  of  the  country. 


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428 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


offshoots  of  it  are  found  in  Minnesota,  Nebraska,  South 
Dakota,  Oregon,  and  other  states. 

Father  Van  den  Broek  continued  to  labor  with  his  cus^ 
tomary  zeal  after  his  return  to  Little  Chute,  in  1848,  until 
his  death  in  that  town,  November  6,  1851,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-eight  years.  He  was  succeeded  by  the  Fathers  of  the 
Holy  Cross,  who  for  many  years  continued  the  work  of 
their  worthy  predecessor,  laboring  zealously  among  the 
Hollanders,  French,  Irish,  and  Indian  half-breeds  of  Little 
Chute  and  vicinity. 

In  those  days  "Franclscus  Bush" — now  Ilollandtown 
— was  in  a  very  primitive  state.  The  writer's  home  was 
a  log  building  with  a  wooden  chimney  and  no  floor  but  the 
bare  ground.  The  parish  church  was  constructed  of  hewn 
logs,  and  was  about  25x45  feet.  The  men  sat  on  one  side 
and  the  women  on  the  other.  Many  came  to  church  in 
their  wooden  shoes,  and  some  of  the  women  had  their 
quaint,  Hollandish  bonnets  or  caps  on,  and  wore  heavy 
gold  earrings  hanging  down  their  ears. 

The  place  was  attended  from  Little  Chute  about  one 
Sunday  every  month,  but,  priest  or  no  priest,  all  the  Hol- 
landers would  go  to  church  every  Simday  and  holy  day  of 
the  year.  The  venerable  Patriarch  of  the  settlement.  Van 
der  H.,  acted  as  quasi-pastor  on  all  Sundays  when  there 
was  no  Mass.  The  first  thing  would  be  the  Stations  or  the 
holy  Way  of  the  Cross,  then  the  prayers  of  the  Mass  in 
Hollandish.  At  the  Gospel  he  would  read  a  short,  practi- 
cal sermon  from  some  book,  adding  occasionally  a  remark 
or  two  of  his  own,  sometimes,  too,  gravely  announcing  to 
the  congregation  the  fact  that  his  sons  had  shot  a  deer,  that 
the  people  might  know  where  to  get  a  good  piece  of  venison 
for  a  reasonable  consideration. 

A  sturdy  farmer  acted  as  usher  and  passed  round  the 
collection  box  during  service,  and  every  time  a  copper  fell 
rattling  into  the  box  he  would  say,  with  his  stentorian 


THEODORE   J.  VAN   DEN   BROBK,  0.  P. 


429 


venison 


voice :     "God  zal't  loonen  !     God  zal't  loonen !     God  will 
reward  it !    God  will  reward  it !" 

Every  fourth  or  fifth  Sunday  the  priest  would  come 
from  Little  Chute  to  say  holy  Mass  in  "Franciscus  Busch." 
There  would  be  a  double  or  triple  row  of  penitents  reach- 
ing from  the  door  to  the  altar  railing.  When  a  penitent 
would  leave  the  confessional,  sometimes  two  or  three  would 
start  on  a  run,  trying  to  get  to  the  priest  first.  Had  a 
Protestant  seen  this  performance  he  would  have  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  confessing  one's  sins  must  not,  after 
all,  be  such  a  hard  or  disagreeable  thing,  for  the  people 
raced,  so  to  say,  with  each  other  to  get  to  the  priest  first. 

There  were  occasional  seasons  of  jollification,  for  in- 
stance, during  the  Carnival  days  before  Ash  Wednesday, 
and  when  the  "St,  Francis  Guild"  had  their  shooting  day. 
A  bird  made  of  the  wood  of  some  tough  pine  root  or  some 
other  material  would  be  placed  on  a  high  flagstaff  or  liberty 
pole  and  then  the  aspirants  for  kingly  honors  would  shoot 
at  the  bird  until,  riddled  with  dozens  of  bullets,  it  would 
tumble  do\^^l.  The  victor  would  be  declared  king  for  the 
next  year  and  then  there  would  be  "a  good  time  all 
around,"  though  we  tihink  the  king  had  to  pay  pretty  dearly 
for  his  royal  dignity,  as  he  would  have  to  get  a  large  silver 
heart  or  plate  made  to  wear  on  grand  occasions  and  was 
expected  to  be  liberal  to  the  "boys." 

Dances  were  indulged  in  occasionally,  but  at  rare  in- 
tervals and  only  during  the  daytime.  Before  dark  every 
young  lady  was  supposed  to  be  at  home.  Those  were  days 
never  to  be  forgotten !  Alas,  for  the  simple,  innocent 
pleasures  of  those  bygone  days !  Our  young  people  of  the 
present  day  know  them  not.  They  are  too  eager  for  night 
dances,  theaters,  and  similar  body  and  soul-destroying 
amusements.  > 


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APPENDIX. 


UNUM   EST   NECESSARIUM. 

FREDERIC  BARAGA, 
KITCHI-MEKATEWIKWANAIE. 

Ninidjanissidog  Saiagiinagog,  Wewcni  hid  anamikoninim. 

Debeniminang  Kije-Manito  kakina  gego  o  gi-gijiton, 
kakina  gego  gaie  win  o  dibendan.  Win  enendarg,  mi  ka- 
kina gego  ejiwebadinig.  Memindage  dash  anamiewin,  win 
od  ijitwawin  o  mino  ganawendan  aking.  Win  debenimi- 
nang o  gi-bidon  anamiewin  gi-bi-ijad  aking  gi-bi-jawenimi- 
nang,  win  gaie  nitam  gi-bi-gagikwe,  gi-kikinoamawad  anis- 
hinaben.  Api  dash  jaig-wa  wi-nagadang  aki,  o  gi-assan  mi- 
dasswi  ashi  nij  ininiwan,  mi  sa  o  kikinoamaganan  tchi 
baba-gagikwenid  misi  aking;  bekish  gaie  o  gi-inan  tchi 
assawad  misiwa  ininiwan  meshkwat  ge-gagikwenidjin. 
Mi  dash  ga-ijitehigewad,  mojag  dash  gi-aiawag  mekatewik- 
wanaieg,  kitchi-mekatewikwanaieg  gaie,  binish  nongoni 
gijigak;  binish  dash  tchi  ishkwa-akiwang  mojag  ta-aiawag 
misiwe  aking.  Win  dash  Jesus  weweni  o  ganawendan 
anamiewin;  gi-ikito  sa  tchi  ganawendang  kaginig.  Win 
gaie  od  assan  kitchi-mekatewikwanaien ;  win  od  ineniman 
tchi  aianid  od  anamiewigamigong. 

Mi  dash  gaie  nin  gi-inenimid  tchi  kitchi-mekatewikwa- 
naiewaian,  aiano-apitendagosissiwan ;  kakina  dash  nin 
minig  oma  anishinaben  cnamianidjin,  nind  inenimig  dash 
tchi  mino  ganawenimagwa,  weweni  tchi  anamiawad,  we- 
weni gaie  tchi  ijiwebisiwad  binish  tchi  ishkwa-bimadisi- 
wad  aking.  Mi  dash  iw  nongom  ge-dodaman  ged-ako- 
bimadisiian. 


APPENDIX. 


ONE  THING  IS  NECESSARY. 

FREDERIC  BARAGA, 
BISHOP. 

My  children,  whom  I  love,  I  salute  you  well. 

Our  Lord  God  made  all  things  and  he  owns  all  things. 
As  he  wills,  so  all  things  happen.  But  especially  does  he 
take  good  care  of  prayer,  his  religion,  on  earth.  He,  our 
Lord,  brought  religion,  when  he  came  on  earth,  when  he 
came  to  have  mercy  on  us,  and  he  first  preached  it,  when 
he  taught  man.  But  when  he  wanted  to  leave  the  earth, 
he  appointed  twelve  men,  that  is,  his  Apostles,  to  go  about 
and  preach  everywhere  on  earth,  and  at  the  same  time  he 
told  them  to  appoint  everywhere  men  to  preach  in  their 
place.  And  that  is  what  they  did,  so  there  were  always 
priests  and  bishops  until  this  day,  and  imtil  the  end  of  the 
world  there  will  always  be  such  everywhere  on  earth.  But 
he,  Jesus,  takes  good  care  of  religion ;  for  he  said  that  he 
would  take  care  of  it  always.  Ho  also  appoints  bishops; 
it  is  his  will  that  there  shall  always  be  such  in  his  church. 


And  so  he  willed  also  me  to  be  bishop,  although  I  am 
unworthy,  and  he  gave  mo  all  the  Christian  Indians  here, 
and  he  wants  me  to  take  good  care  of  them,  to  exhort  them 
well  to  always  practice  their  religion,  to  pray  well,  to  be- 
have well  until  death.  And  that  is  now  what  I  shall  do 
as  long  as  I  live. 


432 


APPENDIX. 


Xongom  (lasli  nin  madjita,  nongom  nitam,  eji-Kitchi- 
mekatewikwanaiewiian,  kakina  mamawi  ki  ganoniniin, 
ninidjanissidog  saiagiinagog !  Pisindawishig,  babamita- 
wishig,  saiagiinagog!  Anotch  gego  wenijishiiig  ki  wi-win- 
damoninini  nongom.  Weweni  wabandamog  mandan  nin 
masinaigan,  kawin  eta  abiding  ki  da-wabandansinawa,  sas- 
agvvana  sa  wabandainog ;  kakina  dash  dodaniog  eji-gagiki- 
migoieg  nongom.  Kishpin  dash  awiia  nissitawinansig 
masinaigan,  mano  kinawa  nessitawinameg  jawenimig,  ka- 
kina dash  agindamawig,  kal^ina  windamawig  minik  eteg 
oma  nin  masinaiganing. 

Ninidjanissidog  saiagiinagog,  weweni  mo  jag  ganawen- 
damog  kid  anamiewiniwa  ged-ako-bimadisiieg  aking.  Ki 
jawendagosim  gi-odapinameg  g'AveiaKossing  ananlie^v^n. 
Kawin  sa  oma  aking  eta  bimadisissi  anishinabe,  kaginig 
win  ta-bimadisi  gi-ishkwa-aiad  aking,  kaginig  o  tchitchag- 
wan  ta-bimadisiwan.  Ta-mino-aiawag  dash  ki  tchitchago- 
nanig  wedi  kagigekamig,  kishpin  anamiaiang,  bekish  gaie 
weweni  ijiwebisiiang.  Mi  dash  iw  ge-ondji-ganawenda- 
meg  weweni  kid  anamiewiniwa,  tchi  jawendagosiieg  kagi- 
gekamig gijigong  gi-ishkwa-kitimagisiieg  aking.  Kego 
wika  babamendangegon  bakaii  ijitwawin;  kawin  gwaiakos- 
sesinon.  Migweteh  inenimig  Kije-Manito  gi-minigoteg 
gweiakossing  anamiewin,  weweni  dash  ganawendamog  ka- 
ginig. Kego  gaie  wika  babamendangegon  anishinabe-ijit- 
wawin.  Memlndage  gagibadad  iw,  apitchi  dash  Kije- 
Manito  Debeniminang  o  jingendan.  Kitchi  matchi  dodam 
enamiad,  o  kitchi-nishkian  gaie  Kije-Maniton,  kishpin 
keiabi  babamendang,  gonima  gaie  neiab  gego  odapinang 
minik  ga-webinang  gi-sigaandasod. 

Mino  ganawendamog  kid  anamiewiniwa,  ninidjanissi- 
dog; kagige  jawendagosiwin  gijigong  wikwatehitog ;  kid 
inenimigowa  sa  Debendjiged  tchi  jawendagosiieg  kagige- 
kamig. Minik  ga-dodang  Kije-Manito  gi-ojitod  gi-jig  aki 
gaie,  gi-bi-ininajaowad  gaie  Ogwissan  aking,  kakina  gi- 
ijitchigo  tchi  ondji  kitchitw  awendaming  od  ijinikasowin, 


ENCYCLICAL. 


433 


But  now  I  begin,  now  for  the  first  time,  as  bishop  I 
address  you  all  together,  my  children,  whom  I  love !  Listen, 
to  me,  obey  me,  ye  whom  I  love !  I  want  to  tell  you  various 
good  things  now.  Read  well  this  my  letter ;  not  only  once 
are  you  to  read  it,  read  it  often,  and  do  all  things  as  you 
are  now  exhorted  (to  do).  But  if  one  cannot  read  the  let- 
ter, do  you,  who  can  read  it,  have  compassion  on  him,  read 
all  of  it  to  him,  tell  him  all  that  is  in  mv  letter. 


fl 


^Ij  children,  whom  I  love,  keep  always  well  your  reli- 
gion as  long  as  you  shall  live  on  earth.  You  are  happy  in 
having  taken  the  true  religion.  For  man  lives  not  only 
here  on  earth,  he  will  live  forever  after  his  life  on  earth 
is  at  an  end,  his  soul  will  live  forever.  But,  our  souls  will 
be  there  forever  well  off  if  we  are  Christians,  and  if  at  the 
same  time  we  live  a  good  life.  Therefore  keep  well  your 
religion  that  you  may  be  happy  forever  in  heaven,  after 
you  have  been  poor  on  earth.  K'ever  mind  another  reli- 
gion ;  it  is  not  the  right  one.  Be  thankful  to  God  that  you 
were  given  the  true  religion,  and  always  keep  it  well.  And 
pay  no  attention  to  Indian-religion  (Indian  paganism). 
It  is  very  foolish,  God  our  Lord  hates  it  (Indian  religion). 
A  Christian  acts  very  wrong  and  offends  God  much,  if  he 
still  minds  or  resumes  what  he  renounced  when  he  was 
baptized. 


Keep  well  your  religion,  my  children ;  strive  after  eter- 
nal happiness  in  heaven;  for  the  Lord  wants  you  to  be 
happy  forever.  All  that  God  did  in  making  heaven  and 
earth  and  sending  his  Son  on  earth,  he  did  all,  that  thereby 
his  name  might  be  sanctified  and  men  thereby  be  happy. 
If  man  living  on  earth  obeys  God,  he  will  receive  from  Him 


i 


I:ii5 


';;  !-^ 


I 


111! 


iiii 


!l. 


'H 


p,  1 


1  ll 


434 


APPENDIX. 


anishinabeg  dash  tchi  ondji  jawendagosiwad.  Kishpin 
anishinabe  bemadisid  aking  babamitawad  Kije-Maniton,  o 
ga-rainigon  kagige  minawanigosiwin  gijigong;  kishpin 
dash  agonwetawad,  kawin  o  ga-wabandansin  kagige  mina- 
■wanigosiwin,  meshkwat  dash  ta-kitimagisi,  ta-kithi-kitim- 
agisi,  kaginig  gaie  ta-kitchi-kitimagisi. 

Mi  dash  iw  ge-dodameg,  ninidjanissidog  saiagiinagog ; 
mojag  weweni  babaniitawig  Debeniminang  Kije-Manito, 
dodamog  eji-gagikimigoieg,  mi  ima  ge-ondji-kitchitwawen- 
dameg  Kije-Manito  od  ijinikasowin  gaie  dash  ki  tchitcha- 
gowag  ki  ga-jawendagosiawag.  Jesus  gi-ikito :  "Bejigwan 
iw  aiapitchi-kitchi-inabadjitong."  Wegoiian  dash  iw?  Mi 
sa  tohi  sagiang  weweni  gaie  tchi  anokitawang  Ki3e-j\Ianito, 
mi  dash  ichi  jawendagosiangwa  ki  tchitchagonanig.  Ka- 
kina  anokivin  minik  endagog  aking  kawin  apitendagwas- 
sinon  epitendag^vak  iw  tchi  anokitawang  Debeniminang 
Kije-Manito,  mi  dash  ningoting  gijigong  tchi  ijaiang.  Mi 
sa  iw  gwaiak  wendji-aiaiang  aking. 

Mikwendamog,  ninidjanissidog,  ga-dodang  Kije-Man- 
ito tchi  mininang  kagige  bimadisiwin  gijigong.  Nakawe 
sa  oma  aking  tchi  bimadisiiang  kid  inenimigonan ;  ki  mini- 
gonan  ananiiewin,  kitchi  Jawendagosiwinan,  o  jawendji- 
gewin  gaie;  tibinawe  Ogwissan  saiagiadjin  o  gi-migiwe^ 
nan  tchi  nibonid  tchibaiatigong,  mi  sa  tchi  jawendagosii- 
ang  gijigong  kagigekamig — Geget  Kije-Manito  kitchi  in- 
endam  tchi  jawendagosiiang,  o  kitchi  apitendan  ki  jawen- 
dagosiwininan.  Ogwissan  o  pagidinan  tchi  jawendagosiad 
ki  tchitchagonanin !  Apegish,  ninidjanissidog,  weweni 
nissitotameg,  mi  dash  gaie  kinawa  tibishko  tchi  apitenda- 
meg  ki  jawendagosiwiniwa,  win  Kije-Manito  epitendang. 

Ow  gaie  mikwendamog,  ninidjanissidog.  Kishpin 
gashkitamasoieg  kagige  jawendagosiwin  gijigong,  kinawa 
ki  ga-jawendagosim,  kinawa  ki  gad-aianawa  minik  ge-gash- 
kitamasoieg.  Kawin  Kije-Manito  nawatch  ta-ondji-jaw- 
endagosissi,  kishpin  kinawa  gijigong  aiaieg;  kaAvin  gaie 
win  awashime  pangi  ta-jawendagossissi  kishpin  kinawa 


ENCYCLICAL. 


435 


eternal  happinees  in  heaven,  but  if  he  disobeys  Ilini  he  will 
not  see  eternal  happiness,  but  on  the  contrary,  he  will  suf- 
fer, he  will  suffer  greatly,  and  he  will  suffer  greatly  for- 
ever. 


But  this  is  what  you  should  do,  my  children,  whom  I 
love;  always  ob^v  well  Our  Lord  God,  do  as  you  are  ex- 
horted ;  thereby  you  will  sanctify  the  name  of  God  and  you 
will  make  happy  your  souls.  Jesus  said :  "But  one  thing 
is  necessary."  But  what  is  that  ?  It  is  that  we  love  and 
serve  God  well,  and  so  make  happy  our  souls.  No  occupa- 
tion (work)  on  earth  is  so  important  as  that,  that  we  serve 
Our  Lord  God  and  so  go  one  day  to  heaven.  That  is  just 
for  what  we  are  on  earth. 


Remember,  my  children,  what  God  has  done  to  give  us 
eternal  life  in  heaven.  Namely  first,  he  wants  us  to  live  on 
earth;  he  gives  us  religion,  the  holy  sacraments  and  his 
grace ;  he  has  given  even  his  flon,  whom  he  loves,  to  die  on 
the  cross  in  order  that  we  may  be  happy  in  heaven  forever. 
Truly,  God  desires  much  that  we  be  happy,  he  prizes  highly 
our  happiness.  He  sacrifices  his  Son  to  make  our  souls 
happy!  My  children,  may  you  well  understand  this,  so 
that  you  too  may  prize  your  happiness  as  God  himself 
prizes  it. 


This  also  remember,  my  children.  If  you  obtain  ever- 
lasting happiness  in  heaven,  you  yourselves  shall  be  happy, 
you  yourselves  have  all  you  shall  have  gained.  God  will 
not  be  more  happy,  if  you  are  in  heaven,  and  he  will  not 
be  less  happy  if  you  burn  in  hell.  You  alone  will  have 
what  you  have  gained.    May  you  well  understand  this. 


ii 


436 


APPENDIX. 


I       i 


!  I  '  t 


1:1  m 


if  ill 


anamakamig  danakisoieg.    Kinawa  sa  eta  ki  gad-aianawa 
ga-gashkitaiiiasoicg.     Ai)egisli  wcweni  nissitotameg. 

Ow  dash  gaie  nissitotainog.    Kishpin  gwaiak  bimadisi- 
ieg,  mi  dash  gashkitoicg  kagige  jawendagosiwin  gijigong, 
kakina  gogo  ki  gi-gashkitoiia\va ;  kid  apitchi  jawendagosim. 
Kishpin  dash  matchi  ijiwebisiieg,  mi  dash  gashkitossiweg 
kagige  minawanigosiwin  gijigong,  kakina  gego  ki  gi-wani- 
tonav/a,  kakina  ki  gi-banadjitonawa;  kawin  bakan  gego  ki 
gad-ondji-jawendagosiasim,  ki  ga-kitchi-kitimagisim  kagi- 
gekamig  anamakamig.     Kawin  oma  aking  gvvaiiik  jawen- 
dagosiwin ningotchi  dagossinon,  gijigong  eta  dagomagad. 
Kishpin  dash  iw  jawendagosiwin  gijigong  endagog  gash- 
kitamasossiweg,  mi  tchi  animisiieg  kagigekamig.     Geget 
kashkendagNvad !     Anawi  o  kikendan  bemadisid  wenibik 
eta  tchi  aiad  oma  aking,  o  kikendan  gaie  dagossinog  aking 
g^vaiak  jawendagosiwin,  gijigong  eta  dagomagad.     Gwai- 
ak 0  kikendan  kakina  iw;  kawin  dash  o  babamendansin, 
mi  dash  iji  bimadisid  tibishko  encndagosid  oma  eta  aking 
tchi     bimadisid,     tchi     apitchi     ishkwa-aiad     dash     api 
nebod  aking.     Kego  kinawa,  ninidjanissidog,  ijiwebisike- 
gon.       Nissitotamog     ejiwebak;     nissitotamog     wendji- 
aiaieg  aking.     Mi  eta  wendji-aiaieg  tchi  gashkitamasoieg 
kagige  bimadisiwin  gijigong.     Kishpin  geget  gashkitima- 
soieg,  ki  gad-apitchi-jawendagosim.,  missawa  kitimagisiieg 
aking.     l^^ishpin  dash  gashkitamasossiweg,  ki  ga-kitchi- 
kitimagisim,  missawa  kitchiwawisiieg  aking,  kitchi  daniieg, 
kitchi  mino  aiaieg  gaie.    Kishpin  awiia  mino  aiad  aking, 
babamendansig    dash    kagige    bimadisiwin,    wikwatchita- 
masossig  gaie,  awashime  win  w^edi  ta-ondji-kashkendam; 
ta-inendam  sa :    Geget  nin  gi-gagibadis  megwa  gi-bimadi- 
siian  aking.    Mi  eta  aking  endagog  nin  gi-sagiton,  nin  gi- 
babamendan.    I:^ongom  dash  nin  gi-waniton  iw,  meshkwat 
dash  kagige  kotagitowin  nin  gi-wikwatchitamason !    Ape- 
gish,  ninidjanissidog,  weweni  nissitotameg,  apegish  baba- 
mendameg ! 


ENCYCLICAL. 


437 


aianawa 


Unclerstaiul  also  this.  If  you  live  justly  and  so  gain 
everlasting  happiness  in  heaven,  you  have  gained  all;  you 
are  very  hajipy.  But  if  you  are  had,  and  so  do  not  gain 
everlasting  happiness  in  heaven,  you  have  lost  all,  you 
have  ruined  all,  for  nothing  else  will  you  he  happy  (i.  c. 
nothing  else  Avill  make  you  happy),  you  will  be  very  miser- 
able forever  in  hell.  Keal  happiness  is  not  anywhere  hero 
on  earth,  it  is  only  in  heaven.  But  if  you  do  not  gain  the 
happiness  that  is  in  heaven,  you  will  suffer  forever.  It  i3 
truly  sad.  Although  a  person  knows  that  he  is  to  bo  only 
a  short  time  here  on  earth,  he  knows  that  real  happiness 
is  not  on  earth,  it  is  only  in  heaven ;  he  really  knows  all 
that ;  but  he  does  not  mind  it,  and  he  lives  so  as  if  he  had 
to  live  only  here  on  earth  and  as  if  he  would  entirely  cease 
to  exist,  when  he  died  on  earth.  You,  my  children,  do 
you  not  act  so.  Understand  how  it  is;  understand  for 
what  you  are  on  earth.  Only  for  this  are  you  on  earth,  to 
gain  eternal  happiness  in  heaven.  If  you  really  gain  it, 
you  will  ]^  very  happy,  even  if  you  are  poor  on  earth. 
But  if  you  do  not  gain  it,  you  will  be  very  miserable,  even 
if  you  are  honored  on  earth,  rich,  and  well.  If  one  is  well 
off  on  earth  but  does  not  mind  eternal  life  and  does  not 
strive  after  it,  he  will  be  there  the  more  sad  on  that  ac- 
count ;  for  he  will  think :  Trnly  I  have  been  foolish  whilst 
I  lived  on  earth.  I  loved  only  what  is  on  earth,  only  it  I 
minded.  But  now  I  have  lost  it,  but  in  place  of  it  I  have 
gained  everlasting  suffering!  May  you  well  understand 
this,  my  children,  may  you  heed  it ! 


438 


APPE.^DIX. 


Gwjiijik  niojjig  nnokitawig  Kije-^fanito,  wenihik  bima- 
disiii'i^  akiug;  wcwcni  dodamog  eji-iruruvciulani:j  I)cl)ciidji- 
jcd ;  kakina  dobwotainog  eiiigokodooiog  niinik  ga-iji-kiki- 
iioaiiioiiaiig  Jesus,  gi-bi-aiad  wenibik  aking;  kego  ganage 
be  jig  ikitowiri  webinangogon.  Gogct  aniiid  gagikwevvinaii 
saiiaga(b)Ti,  ga-iji-kikiiioanionang  Jesus;  kawin  ki  da-gasli- 
kitossiniin  tchi  nissitotaniaug,  kJshpin  kid  inondainovvini- 
iiaii  eta  aioiang;  osam  jagwadad  kid  inendaniovviui- 
nan.  Debweiendamowin  dasb  aioda;  songau  kakina  deb- 
wetanda  onia  aking  niinik  ga-ikitod  Jesus,  wedi  dash  giji- 
gong  kakina  niijisha  ki  ga-wabandamin  ejiwebak.  Kisb- 
pin  gego  osam  sanagak  tchi  nissitotameg,  pabige  inenda- 
niog:  Kawin  nin  nin  nissitotansin  iw,  kawin  nin  kiken- 
dansin  ejiwebak,  win  dash  Kije-Manito  o  kikendan.  Win 
gi-ikitod,  mi  wendji-debwetaman  Paniraa  dash  gijigong 
nin  ga-kikendan  kakina  gego. 

Weweni,  nissidjanissidog,  ganawendamog  ki  debweien- 
damowiniwa  ged-ako-bimadisiieg,  Kije-Manito  tchi  sagii- 
neg;  ikito  sa  kitchitwa  Paul :  Kawin  awiia  o  ga-sagiigossin 
Kije-Maniton,  kislipin  debweiendansig.  Jesus  gaie  ikito: 
"Aw  ge-debwetansig  ta-kagige-kotagendam  anamakamig." 
Kego  dash  inendangegon,  pijishig  debweiendamowin  tchi 
debisseg,  ge-ondji-gashkitamassoieg  kagige  bimadisiwin 
gijigong.  Bakan  ejitwadjig  o  debwetanawa  iw;  kawin 
dash  awansinon.  Ojibiigade  Kije-Manito  o  masinaiga- 
ning:  Kishpin  debweiendang  eta  awiia,  mine  dodansig 
dash  bekish,  nibomagadini  o  debweiendamowin,  kawin 
ningot  inabadassinini.  Enigokodeeieg  wikwatchitog  tchi 
mino  ganawendamog  ki  debweiendamowiniw^a,  kid  anamie- 
winiwa;  bekish  gaie  dodamog  mojag  eji-kikinoamagoieg 
anamiewin.  "Ta-bimadad  ki  debweiendfimowiniwa,"  kid 
igomin.  Kishpin  sa  g\vaiak  wikwatchitoiang  tehi  iji  bima- 
disiiang  eji-kikinoamagoiang  anamiewin,  mi  tchi  bimadak 
ki  debwciendamowininan.  Bemadak  dash  debweiendamo- 
win ki  ga-minigomin  kagige  bimadisiwdn  gijigong. 

Kid  iji  gagikimininim  dash,  ninidjani&sidog,  weweni 


ENCYCLICAL. 


439 


Always  tiMily  serve  God,  whilst  you  arc  living  a  short 
time  on  eartli;  act  well  as  the  Lord  likes;  from  your  whole 
lieart  believe  all  that  Jesus  taught  us  when  he  eanie  to  bo 
a  short  time  on  earth;  do  not  reject  even  one  single  word. 
Some  things,  that  Jesus  has  taught  us,  are  indcH^d  hard 
(to  be  comprehended) ;  we  woukl  be  unable  to  comj)rehend 
them,  if  we  were  to  employ  our  reason  only;  our  reasou 
is  too  weak.  But  let  us  use  faith;  let  us  -^trongly  believe 
here  on  eartli  all  that  Jesus  said;  there  in  heaven  we  shall 
plainly  see  how  all  things  are.  If  something  is  too  difficult 
for  you  to  understand,  think  immediately:  I  indeed  do 
not  understand  this,  I  do  not  know  how  it  is,  but  God,  he 
knows  it.  Because  he  said  it,  iherefore  I  believe.  After- 
wards in  heaven  I  shall  know  all. 


' 


Keep  well,  my  children,  your  faith  as  long  as  you  live, 
that  God  may  love  you,  for  St.  Paul  says:  No  one  will 
be  loved  by  God,  if  he  does  not  beliere.  And  Jesus  sa^is : 
^'He  who  will  not  believe,  shall  suffer  forever  in  hell." 
But  do  not  think  that  faith  alone  is  sufficient  for  you  to 
gain  eternal  life  in  heaven.  Protestants  believe  that;  but 
it  is  not  so.  It  is  written  in  God's  book  (holy  Bible)  :  if 
one  believes  only,  but  does  not  do  good  at  the  same  time, 
his  faith  is  dead ;  it  is  of  no  use.  Endeavor  with  all  your 
heart  to  keep  well  your  faith,  your  religion,  and  at  the 
same  time  do  as  your  religion  teaches  you.  We  are  told : 
*Tet  your  faith  be  living."  If  wo  truly  try  to  live  so  as 
our  religion  teaches  us  then  our  faith  is  living.  And  a 
living  faith  will  give  us  everlasting  life  in  heaven. 


weweni 


I  exhort  you,  my  children,  keep  well  your  faith,  your 


M. 


i 


IM   I! 


I  » 


:!l 


iM 


.  I 


440 


APPENDIX. 


ganawendamog  ki  debweiendamowiniwa,  kid  anamiewini- 
wa;  ijiwebisig  eji-nondameg  anamic-gagikwewin ;  ki  ga- 
kitclii-jawendagosim  dash  Kije-Manito  od  ogimawiwining. 

Menindage  dash  gaie  kid  iji  gagikimininim  tchi  ana- 
miaieg  endassogijigak ;  ikito  sa  Debeniminang  Jesus: 
^^Mojag  anamiag,  kego  wika  anijitangegon."  Mo  jag 
sa,  endasso-gijigak,  kigijeb  onagoshig  gaie  weweni 
anamiag ;  nonda-gijig  dash  aiapi  mikwenimig  Kije-Manito, 
kego  wika  wanenimakegon.  Kishpin  awiia  anamiassig 
kigijeb,  kawin  gwetch  ta-inashkawisissi  tchi  miganad  ma- 
tchi  nianiton.  Mojag  sa  win  matchi  manito  ki  wi-minigo- 
nan  matchi  inendamowin,  tchi  matchi  inendamang  nitam, 
mi  dash  gaie  tchi  matchi  dodamang.  Kishpin  awiia  wewe- 
ni anamiad,  ta-mashkawendam,  gwaiak  o  ga-miganan  ma- 
tchi maniton,  kawin  o  gad-odapinamawassin  matchi  inen- 
damowin, kawin  gaie  ta-matchi-dodansi.  Kishpin  dash 
anamiassig,  kawin  gweteh  ta-mashkawendansi,  waiba  dash 
ta-pagishin  batadovvining.  Kego  kitimikegon  tchi  anami- 
aieg,  ninidjanissidog;  mojag  endasso-gijigak  anamiag,  be- 
kish  gaie  nanagatawendamog  ekitoieg  anamiaieg.  Kinid- 
janissiwag  gaie  weweni  kikinoamawig  anamiewin.  Kitchi 
matchi  dodam  enainiad  wenidjanissid,  kishpin  kitimid  tchi 
kikinoamawad  onidjanissan  anamiewin.  Kego  kitimike- 
gon, ki  gad-animisim  dibakonige-gijigak. 

Memindage  dash  enamiegijigakin  weweni  anamiag; 
kego  anokikegon  iwapi ;  anamiewigamigong  gaie  pindigeg 
dassing-pandigengin.  Sagitog  apitchi  anamiewigamig,  mi 
sa  Kije-Manito  o  wigiwam  aking.  Kishpin  awiia  weweni 
paiapindigedjin  Kije-Manito  o  wigiwaming  aking,  ta-pin- 
digana  Kije-Manito  o  wigiwaming  gijigong  gi-ishkwa- 
bimadisid  ogidakamig. 

Ninidjanissidog  saiagiinagog,  weweni  gaie  mojag  ma- 
nadjiig  Kije-Manito,  kitchitwawenimig  gaie  enigokodeeieg. 
Kego  wika  awiia  bemadisid  aking 'awashime  manadjiake- 
gon  eji-manadjieg  Kije-Manito.  Awashime  manadjiig, 
awashime  kitchitwawenimig  Debeniminang  Kije-Manito, 


ENCYCLICAL. 


441 


li-  r: 


religion ;  live  according  as  you  hear  religions  preaching ; 
and  you  will  be  very  happy  in  the  kingdom  of  God. 

And  especially  do  I  exhort  you  to  pray  every  day,  for 
Our  Lord  Jesus  says:  "Pray  always,  never  give  up.'* 
Always  pray  well  every  day,  morning  and  evening,  occa- 
sionally remember  God  during  the  day,  do  never  forget 
him.  If  a  person  does  not  pray  in  the  morning,  he  will 
not  be  very  strong  to  fight  the  devil.  For  he,  the  devil, 
wants  to  give  us  a  bad  thought,  that  we  first  think  evil 
and  so  also  then  do  evil.  If  a  person  prays  well,  he  will 
strongly  resolve,  he  will  really  fight  the  devil,  he  will  not 
take  bad  thoughts  from  him,  and  he  will  not  be  bad.  But 
if  he  does  not  pray,  he  will  not  make  strong  resolutions, 
but  soon  fall  into  sin.  Do  not  be  slothful  in  praying,  my 
children ;  always  pray  every  day,  and  at  the  same  time 
reflect  on  what  you  are  saying  when  praying.  Instruct 
well  your  children  in  religion.  A  Christian  parent  does 
very  bad,  if  he  is  slothful  in  teaching  religion  to  his  chil- 
dren. Be  not  slothful ;  you  will  suffer  for  it  on  judgment- 
day. 


1  s 


Pray  well  especially  on  Sundays;  do  not  work  then; 
and  enter  the  church  as  often  as  people  enter.  Love  very 
much  the  church,  for  it  is  God's  house  on  earth.  If  a  per- 
son usually  enters  well  God's  house  on  earth,  he  will  enter 
God's  house  in  heaven  after  he  has  ended  his  life  on  earth. 


My  children,  whom  I  love,  respect  God  well  and  al- 
ways, and  glorify  him  from  your  whole  heart.  Never 
show  greater  respect  to  any  person  on  earth  than  you  show 
to  God.  Respect  and  glorify  Our  Lord  God  more  than  all 
people  on  earth.    But  it  often  happens  that  a  person  shows 


1*1 


i '       ! 


442 


APPEKDIX. 


!      if 


kakina  dash  bomadisidjig  aking.  Sasagwana  dash  iw  iji- 
webad,  awiia  awashime  manadjiad  bemadisinidjin  aking, 
Kije-]\Iaintoii  dasli.  Nanagatawendamog  mi  dash  tchi  nis- 
sitotanieg.  Kishkin  sa  gaganonad  mekatowikwanaien  ka- 
^vin  ta-matchi-gigitossi,  kawin  gaie  ta-winitagosissi,  kawin 
sa  gego  maiaiiadadinig  ta-ikitossi;  o  manadjian  sa  mekate- 
wikwanaien  pesindagodjin.  Kishpin  dash  bekanisinidjin 
wadji-gagibadisinidjin  gaganonad,  anotch  gego  gegibada- 
dinig,  beshigwadadinig  ta-ikito.  Xissitotamog !  Kawin 
na  win  awashime  o  manadjiassin  raekatewikwanaien,  eji- 
manadjiad  Kije-Maniton  ?  Kishpin  mekatewikwanaieu 
nondagod,  kawin  matchi  gijwessi;  kishpin  da3h  nondagos- 
sig  anawi  dash  Kije-Maniton  nondagod,  anocch  gego  mat- 
chi ikito.  Mi  dash  geget  bemadisinidjin  aking  awashime  o 
manadjian,  Kije-Maniton  dash.  Gegei  kitchi  matchi  do- 
dam,  kitchi  bata-ijiwebad  iw.  Mi  dash  wendji-igoieg,  ni- 
nidjanissidog,  awashime  manadjiig  Kije-Manito,  kakina 
dash  bomadisidjig  aking.  ]\Iinik  ge-wd-ikitossiweg,  ge-wi- 
dodansiweg  gaie  enassamid  mekatewikwanaie,  kego  iw 
wika  ningotchi  ikitokegon ;  misi  sa  aia  Debeniminang  Kije- 
Manito  ;  kaginig  ki  ganawabamigowa,  ki  pisindagowa  gaie. 
Kishpin  enamiad  enind:  Eji-manadjiad  mekatewik- 
wanaie, ki  da-iji-manadjia  Kije-Manito;  pabige  da-inen- 
dam :  Osam  pangi  nin  da-manadjia ;  kawin  na  Kije-Manito 
awashime  apitendagosissi,  kakina  mekatewikwanaieg,  Kit- 
chi-mekatewikwanaieg  gaie  ?  Geget  awashime  apitenda- 
gosi,  kawin  dash  ganage  iw  minik  manadjiassi,  mekatewik- 
wanaie eji-manadjiind  Enassaminid  mekatewikwanaien 
kawin  ta-matchi-ikitossi,  enassaminid  dash  Kije-Maniton 
kitchi  nibiwa  ta-matchi-ikito.  Geget  kashkendagwad ! 
Kego  ijiwobisikegon,  ninidjanissidog.  Weweni  manadjiig, 
apitchi  kitchitwawenimig  Debeniminang  Ki^'e-Manito. 
Mojag  mikwenimig,  misi  sa  aia ;  kaginig  ki  w^abamigowa, 
apine  ki  nondagowa.  Kego  matchi  dodangegon,  ki  waba- 
migowa  sa  Debendjiged;  kego  matchi  ikitokegon,  ki  non- 
dagowa sa  Maiamawi-Ishpendagosid. 


ENCYCLICAL. 


443 


greater  respect  to  people  on  earth  than  to  God.  Tlefleot 
that  you  may  nnderstand.  If  a  person  converses  with  a 
priest,  he  will  not  speak  ill ;  he  will  not  speak  immodestly ; 
lie  will  not  say  anything  bad ;  for  he  respects  the  priest, 
who  is  listening  to  him.  But  if  he  converses  with  another, 
who  is  his  comrade  in  impurity,  he  will  talk  various  fool- 
ish, immodest  things.  Understand !  Does  he  not  respect 
more  highly  the  priest  than  God  ?  If  he  is  heard  by  the 
priest,  he  does  not  talk  bad,  but  if  he  is  not  heard  by  him, 
although  he  is  heard  of  God,  he  talks  all  kinds  of  bad 
tilings.  And  so  he  really  respects  more  a  person  on  earth 
than  God.  Truly,  he  acts  very  wickedly,  it  is  very  bad. 
Hence  you  are  told,  my  children,  respect  God  more  than 
all  the  people  living  on  earth.  What  you  would  not  say, 
what  you  would  not  do  l)efore  the  priest,  never  say  it  any- 
where else,  for  Our  Lord  God  is  everywhere ;  he  is  always 
lookinc;  at  you,  he  is  alwavs  listeninc*  to  you. 


ti 


If  9  Christian  is  told :  As  you  respect  the  priest  sc 
should  you  also  respect  God,  he  should  immediately  think : 
too  little  w^ould  I  respect  God ;  is  God  not  more  to  be 
prized  than  all  priests  and  bishops  ?  Truly,  he  is  more 
to  be  prized,  yet  he  is  not  respected  as  much  as  the  priest 
is  respected.  A  person  would  not  talk  bad  before  a  priest, 
but  before  God  he  talks  bad  very  much.  It  is  really  sad ! 
Do  not  act  so,  my  children.  Respect  wtII  and  glorify 
very  much  Our  Lord  God.  Always  remember  him ;  he  is 
everywhere ;  he  sees  you  always,  he  hears  you  always.  Do 
not  act  wickedly,  for  the  Lord  sees  you ;  do  not  talk  wick- 
edlv,  for  the  Most-IIi2,h  hears  you. 


fi    !l. 


ii;^» 


444 


APPENDIX. 


j 

^K&£ii  ij 

,   L  ij 

Hh  ! 

|l!' 

■  ! 

il 

Weweni  gaie  mojag,  niridjanissidog,  babamitawig  Kije- 
Manito.  Apitcbi  win  apitendagosi ;  kakina  gcgo  win  o  gi- 
gijiton,  kakina  gego  gaie  od  apitchi  dibendan.  Weweni 
babamitawig.  Potch  bemadisinidjin  aking  tchi  babamita- 
wawad,  inawag  enaniiadjig,  mi  &a  abinodjiiag  tchi  baba- 
mitawaw^ad  onigiigowan,  enonindjig  dash  tchi  babamita- 
wawad  debenimigowadjin.  Awashime  dash  kid  iji  gagi- 
kimigomin  tchi  babamitawang  Kije-Manito,  win  sa  kakina 
kid  apitchi  dibenimigonan. 

Kije-jManito  mojag  ki  gaganonigonan  kideinang,  mojag 
ki  gaganonigonan  tchi  jingendamang  tchi  ojindamang  gaie 
kakina  maianadak,  meshkwat  dash  wenijishing  eta  tchi 
dodamang.  Kishpin  enamiad  wi-matchi-dodang,  pabige 
KijerManiton  o  ga-ganonigon  odeing:  Kego  dodangen,  ma- 
nadad,  o  gad-igon.  Kishpin  dash  wi-mino-dodang  enamiad, 
pabige  Kije-Maniton  o  ga-gagansomigon  tchi  mino  dodang. 
Mi  sa  eji-ganoninang  mojag  Kije-Manito  kideinang.  Kit- 
chi  jawendagosi  dash  enamiad  pesindawad  mojag  Kije- 
Maniton,  eji-ganonigodjin. 

Minawa  dash  ki  gaganonigonan  Debendjiged  gagiL- 
wewining.  Api  enamiad  pesindang  anamie-gagikwewin, 
gw^aiak  Kije-Maniton  o  pisindawan.  Anawi  geget  mekate- 
wikwanaie  gagikwe ;  tibishko  dash  gagikwe,  Jesus  Debeni- 
minang  ga-iji-gagikwed.  Ikito  gaie  Jesus:  "Kishpin 
awiia  pisindawad  gegikwenidjin,  nin  igo  nin  pisindog." 

Ninidjanissidog  saiagiinagog,  weweni  babamitawig 
mekatewikwanaieg  gegikwedjig;  Kije-Manito  ki  ga-baba- 
mitawawa.  Dassing  gaie  waiebinigeiegon,  weweni  odapi- 
namog  minik  egoieg  iwapi,  weweni  kakina  dodamog,  Kije- 
Manito  iwapi  ki  ganonigowa. 

Memindage  dash,  ninidjanissidog,  sagiig  Kije-Manito. 
Kishpin  awiia  weweni  saglad  Kije-Maniton  kakina  gego 
gwaiak  dodam,  kawin  gego  ondjita  matchi  dodansi.  Apit- 
chi dash  gwaiak  kid  igomin  tchi  sagiang  Debeniminang 
Kije-Manito,  ki  kikinoamagonan  gaie  Jesns  ged-iji-sa- 
giang;  ikito  sa  :  "Debendjiged  ki  Kije-Manitom  ki  ga-sagia 


ENCYCLICAL. 


445 


Always  obey  God  well,  my  children.  lie  is  highly 
worthy;  he  has  created  all  things  and  to  him  belong  all 
things.  Obey  him  well.  Christians  are  told  to  obey  even 
those  who  are  living  on  earth,  namely,  children  to  obey 
their  parents,  and  servants  to  obey  their  masters,  lar 
more  are  we  exhorted  to  obey  God,  for  to  him  we  all  be- 
long entirely. 


God  always  speaks  to  us  in  our  hearts;  he  always 
tells  us  that  we  should  hate  and  shun  all  that  is  bad,  and 
on  the  contrary  should  do  only  what  is  good.  If  a  Chris- 
tian is  inclined  to  do  bad,  immediately  he  is  told  by  God 
in  his  heart :  don't  do  that,  it  is  bad,  thus  he  will  be  told  by 
Him.  But  if  a  Christian  is  inclined  to  do  good,  imme- 
diately he  will  be  requested  by  God  to  do  the  good.  It  is 
thus  that  God  always  speaks  to  us  in  our  hearts.  Very 
happy  is  the  Christian  who  always  listens  to  God  speak- 
ing to  him. 

Again,  the  Lord  speaks  to  us  in  sermons.  When,  a 
Christian  listens  to  a  sermon,  he  really  listens  to  God.  Al- 
though really  the  priest  preaches,  yet  he  preaches  so  as 
Our  Lord  Jesus  preached.  And  Jesus  says:  "If  one 
listens  to  him  that  preaches,  he  listens  to  me  myself." 

My  children,  whom  I  love,  obey  well  the  priest's 
preaching;  God  you  will  obey.  And  as  often  as  you  con- 
fess, receive  well  all  you  are  told  then,  do  all  well,  God 
speaks  to  you  then. 


"fi 


n 


But  especially,  my  children,  love  God.  If  a  person 
loves  God  well,  he  will  do  everything  right,  he  will  not  do 
anything  bad  purposely.  We  are  very  justly  told  that  we 
should  love  Our  Lord  God,  and  Jesus  teaches  us  how  we 
should  love  him ;  for  he  says :  "The  Lord,  thy  God,  thou 
shalt  love  with  thy  whole  heart,  and  with  thy  whole  soul, 


I 
"I 


<n 


.  *' 


1 1 


II 


446 


APPENDIX. 


kakina  kidcing,  kakina  gaie  ki  tcliitcliagong,  kakina  gaie 
kid  inendamowiriing,  kakina  gaie  ki  maslikawisiwining;" 
mi  ekitod  Jesus.  Wikwatchitog  dash,  niiiidjaiiisisidog, 
gwaiak  tchi  sagieg,  eji-kikinoaiiionang  Jesns. 

Kakina  kideing  ki  ga-sagia  Kije-Manito,  ikito  Jesus. 
Kishpin  sa  awiia  awasliime  sagiad  Kije-Maniton  kakina 
dash  aking  endagog,  kakina  gaie  ode  minad  Kije-Maniton, 
ani  av/  saiagiad  kakina  odeing.  Kishpin  awiia  apitchi  song- 
endang  tchi  ojindang  batadowin,  awashinie  gaie  minwend- 
ang  tchi  nlssind,  iw  dash  tchi  bata-dodang  ondjita,  mi  aw 
saiagiad  Kije-Maniton  kakina  o  tchitchagwang.  Kishpin 
gaie  mikwenimad  mojag  Kije-Maniton,  tibishko  sa  go  wa- 
bamad,  mi  dash  bekish  inendang:  Kawin  nin  wi-matchi- 
ikitossi,  kawin  gaie  nin  wi-matchi-dodansi,  nin  nondag  sa 
Debendjiged,  nin  wabamig  gaie,  mi  aw  saiagiad  Kije-Man- 
iton kakina  od  inendamowining.  Kishpin  dash  enamiad 
apitchi  mashkawendang  tchi  mino  ijiwebisid;  apegisli 
mino  ijiwebisiian,  mojag  inendang,  bekish  gaie  geget  ojin- 
dang maianadak  minik  eji-gashkitod,  mi  aw  saiagiad  Kije- 
Maniton  kakina  o  mashkawisiwining. 

Geget  jawendagosi  gwaiak  saiagiad  Kije-Maniton ! 
Mano  sa,  ninidjanissidog,  mojag  wikwatchitog  weweni  tchi 
sagieg.  Epitch  dash  sagieg,  meshkwat  jingendamog  ka- 
kina batadowinan.  Memindage  webinamog,  jingendamog 
gaie  matchi  nimikwewin ;  apitchi  geget  manadad.  Anotch 
bata-ikito,  bata-dodam  gaie  awiia  ga-giwashkwebidjin. 
Ojindamog  gaie  kakina  bishigwadisiwin,  gagibadisiwin. 
Gossig  Kije-Manito,  ki  wabamigonan  sa  mojag. 

Ninidjamissidog  saiagiinagog,  kakina  sa  go  maianadak 
jingendamog,  eji-jingendang  Debeniminang  Kije-Manito; 
kakina  dash  meno-ijiwebak  odapinamog,  minwendamog, 
eji-mmwendang  Kije-Manito;  ki  ga-jawendagosim  dash 
kagigekamig  Kije-Manito  od  ogimawiwining  gijigong. 

Mi  ge-ing. 
-|-  Frederic, 

Kitchi-Mekatewikw^anaie. 


ENCYCLICAL. 


447 


and  with  thy  whole  niiiid,  and  Avith  all  thy  strength,"  tlius 
says  Jesns.  Endeavor,  my  children,  to  love  him  so  as 
Jesns  teaches  us. 


With  thy  whole  heart  shalt  thou  love  God,  says  Jesus. 
If  a  person  loves  God  more  than  all  that  is  on  earth,  and 
gives  his  whole  heart  to  God,  such  a  one  loves  God  with 
all  his  heart.  If  one  strongly  resolves  to  avoid  sin,  and 
if  he  would  rather  wish  to  be  killed  than  do  evil  pur- 
posely, such  a  one  loves  God  with  his  whole  soul.  And  if 
he  always  remembers  God,  just  as  if  he  saw  him,  and  so  at 
the  same  time  thinks :  I  will  not  speak  ill  and  I  will  not 
do  evil,  for  the  Lord  hears  and  sees  me,  such  a  one  loves 
God  with  his  whole  mind.  If  a  Christian  very  strongly 
resolves  to  live  well,  if  he  always  thinks :  May  I  live  well, 
and  at  the  same  time  really  avoids  what  is  bad  as  much 
as  he  can,  such  a  one  loves  God  with  all  his  strength. 


Ij 


He  indeed  is  happy  who  really  loves  God !  Well  now, 
my  children,  always  endeavor  to  love  God  well.  But  since 
you  love  him,  hate  on  the  other  hand  all  sins.  Especially 
reject  and  hate  bad  drinking;  truly,  it  is  very  bad.  When 
a  person  is  drunk,  he  talks  and  does  various  bad  things. 
Hate  also  adultery  and  impurity.  Eear  God,  for  he  al- 
ways sees  us. 

My  children,  whom  I  love,  hate  all  that  is  bad,  as  Our 
Lord  God  hates  it,  but  accept,  love  everything  that  is  good, 
as  God  likes ;  and  you  will  be  happy  forever  in  the  king- 
dom of  God  in  heaven. 


Ameru 
+  Frederic, 

Bishop  (Great  Black-gown). 


f 


f 


A  FEW  PECULIARITIES  OF  THE 
CHIPPEWA  LANGUAGE. 

Long  words,  e.  g. — 

Mitchikanakobid  j  igan — fence. 
Kijabikisigan — stove. 
Debenirainang — Our  Lord. 

No  gender;  win  means  he,  she,  it;  this  explains  the 
frequent  mistakes  made  by  Indians  when  speaking  Eng- 
lish, using  the  pronoun  he  promiscuously  for  all  genders, 
e.  g.j  he  is  a  good  woman. 

All  nouns  are  classed  under  two  heads,  animate,  and 
inanimate,  the  former  embrace  all  objects  living,  or 
grammatically  animate,  e.  g. — 

Inini — man. 

Ikwe — woman. 

Kv.iwisens — bov. 

Ikwesens — girl. 

Akik — kettle  (gram,  animate). 

Tashkibodjigan — sawmill  (gram,  animate). 

Inanimate  are  all  lifeless  objects,  either  naturally  or 
grammatically  so  considered,  e.  g. — 

Kit  igan — a  field. 
Kijewadisiwin — kindness. 
Wiiawima — body  (gram,  inanimate). 
I^ishkinjig — my  eye  (gram,  inanimate). 

Few  real  adjectives ;  mostly  adjective- verbs,  e.  g. — 

Kitchi — great,  much. 
Pangi — small,  little. 
;      JMino — good. 


CHIPPEWA   LANGUAGE. 


449 


Matclii — bad. 
Onijisliin — it  is  good. 
Manadad — it  is  bad. 

Two-fold  form  for  expressing  first  person  plural:  we, 
us,  our,  G.  g. — 

Xinawind — we,    our    (person    addressed    not    in- 
cluded). 
Kinawind — we,  our  (person  addressed  included). 

This  dual  form  of  "we"  is  obser\'ed  in  all  nouns  with 
the  possessive  pronoun  "our;"  also  in  all  moods  and  tenses 
of  active  verbs. 

Verbs  have  (a)  a  positive  and  a  negative  form;  (b)  a 
dubitative  or  historical  form,  e.  g. — 

Giwe — he  goes  home. 

Kawin  giwessi — he  does  not  go  home. 

Giwedog — perhaps  he  goes  home. 

Kawin  giw^essidog — perhaps  he  does  not  go  home. 

There  are  nine  conjugations.  Each  conjugation  has 
a  positive  and  a  dubitative  form,  which  each  have  again 
an  affirmative  and  a  negative  form,  making  thus,  we  might 
say,  thirty-six  conjugations,  e.  g. — 

a,  e,  i,  0 — wabi — he  sees  (1st  conjugation), 
am — inendam — he  thinks  (2d  conjugation), 
in,  on — dagwishm — he  arrives  (3d  conjugation), 
a — wabama — he  is  seen  (4th  conjugation), 
enan — od  atagenan — he  gambles  for  it  (5th  conju- 
gation), 
an — 0  wabandan — he  sees  it  (Cth  conjugation), 
a,  e,  i,  0 — wabandjigade — it  is  seen  (7th  conjuga- 
tion), 
ad — manadac? — it  is  bad  (8th  conjugation), 
an,  in — onijishtn — it  is  good  (9th  conjugation). 

Each  of  these  verbs  have  a  negative  form ;  that  makes 
eighteen  conjugational  forms.    Then  each  of  them  has  an 


'  f! 


n 

■a 


Ml' 

I 


\l^ 


I 


f ; 


450 


APPENDIX. 


affirmative  diibitative  form ;  tliat  makes  twenty-seven  con- 
jugational  forms,  besides  we  have  a  negative  dubitative 
form,  which  makes  nine  additional  forms ;  in  all  thirty-six 
conjugational  foniis.  Now,  each  of  these  thirty-six  fonns 
have  their  moods,  tenses,  etc.,  making  it  necessary  to  learn 
by  heart,  perhaps  abont  3,000  or  4,000  different  termina- 
tions ;  truly,  an  herculean  task. 

The  Chippewa  language  is  infinitely  rich  in  verbs,  is  a 
language  of  verbs,  everything  almost  is  drawn  within  the 
magical  circle  of  the  verb.  Nouns  are  transfonned  into 
verbs,  e.  g. — 

Inini — man  ;  ininiwi — he  is  a  man. 

Ikwe — woman ;  ikwcwi — she  is  a  woman. 

Adjectives  are  made  into  verbs,  e.  g. — 

Kijewadisi — he  is  kind. 
Sassagisi — he  is  stingy. 

Numerals  are  changed  into  verbs,  e.  g. — 

Bejig — one;  bejigo — he  is  one. 
Nij — two;  nijiwag — they  are  two. 

Adverbs  are  changed  into  verbs,  e.  g. — 
Mamandadodam — he  acts  wonderfully. 
Minotchige — he  does  well. 

Prepositions  are  expressed  mostly  verbially,  e.  g. — 

Nin  ganona — I  speak  to  him. 

Nin  ganodamawa — I  speak  for  him. 

The  Chippepwa  language  is  the  most  regular,  system- 
atic language  the  writer  know^s  of — all  goes  by  rule — 
scarcely  any  exceptions,  and  all  terminations  follow  cer- 
tain systematic  rules.  It  is  more  regular  or  systematic 
than  either  Greek  or  Latin. 

DIFFERENT  CLASSES  OF  VERBS. 

1.    Reciprocal  verbs.     They  show  a  reaction  of  the  sub- 
ject on  itself ;  e.  g.,  nin  nondas=I  hear  myself. 


.t. 


CHIPPEWA   LANGUAGE. 


451 


2.  Coiniiiiinicativc  verbs.  They  show  a  mutual  action 
of  two  or  more  subjects  upon  each  other,  or  simply 
mutual  action ;  c.  g.,  nin  wabaiKlimin=we  sec  each 
other; — nimiidiwag'=they  dance  together. 

3.  Personifying  verbs.  They  represent  inanimate  things 
as  doing  actions  of  an  animate  being;  e.  g.,  o  nissigon 
ishkotewabo=fire-water  kills  him. 

4.  Reproaching  verbs.  They  show  that  their  subjects 
have  some  reproachful  habit  or  quality;  e.  r/.^  niba= 
he  sleej^s ) — nibasliki=:he  sleeps  too  much. 

5.  Substantive  verbs.  They  are  derived  from  substan- 
tives ;  e.  g.,  inini=man ; — ininiwi=he  is  a  man. 

6.  Adjective  verbs.  They  describe  the  quality,  etc.,  of 
their  subjects;  e.  g.,  John  songisi=John  is  strong. 

7.  Numeral  verbs.  Thev  indicate  the  number  of  their 
subjects,  e.  g.,  nissiwan  aw  ikwe  og\vissan=the  sons 
of  that  woman  are  three=she  has  thiee  sons. 

8.  Adverbial  verbs.  They  indicatt  how  their  subjects 
act;  e.  g.,  winigijwe=^he  speaks  immodestly. 

9.  Abimdance  verbs.  They  signify  an  abundnnce  of 
what  they  express ;  e.  g.,  sagime=a  mosquito ; — sagi- 
meka=there  are  many  mosquitos. 

10.  Possessive  verbs.  They  indicate  ownership  or  pos- 
session ;  e.  g.j  mokoman=a  knife ; — omokomani=he 
has  a  knife. 

11.  Working  verbs.  They  signify  the  doing  of  a  work 
or  making  something ;  c.  g.,  mikana;=a  road ; — mika- 
nake=he  makes  a  road. 

12.  Feigning  verbs.  They  designate  feigning  or  dissimu- 
lation ;  e.  g.,  mawi=he  weeps ; — mawikaso=he  feigns 
weeping. 

13.  Causing  verbs.  They  indicate  that  the  subject  of  such 
a  verb  causes  some  animate  being  to  do  something: 
e.  g.,  anoki=he  works; — nind  anokia;=I  make  hina 
work. 

14.  Frequentative  verbs.     They  indicate  a  repetition  or 


IT    ti 


r 


m 
III-' I 


:ili 


'I 

■i  '■ 

JM'i' 

k 


in? 


(Ill: 


m 


ir.. 


Iv 


It 


452 


APPENDIX. 


^■^. 


frequent  doing  of  a  certain  act ;  e.  g.,  nin  pakiteowa= 
I  strike  him; — nin  j)apakiteowa=I  strike  him  re- 
peatedly. 

15.  Pitying  verbs.  They  arc  used  to  manifest  pity;  e.  g., 
bakade=ho  is  hungry ; — bakadeshi=he  is  worthy  of 
pity,  being  so  hungry. 

16.  Compound  verbs.     They  are  formed  of  two  or  more 
radical  syllables,  to  which  a  verbal  tennination  is  an- 
nexed; e.  g.,  minwadjimo=he  tells,  relates,  something 
good,  from; — min=good;  and  adjim  refers  to  relat 
ing  news,  stories ;  "o"  is  the  verbal  tennination. 

From  one  and  the  same  root  can  be  formed  several 
classes  of  verbs;  c.  g.,  wab,  refers  to  seeing: 
nin  wab=I  see. 
"    wabama=I  see  him,  her. 

wabandan=I  see  it. 

wabamlis=I  see  myself. 

wabandimin=\ve  see  each  other. 

wabandamawa=I  see  his,  e.  g.,  book. 

wabange=I  look  on. 

wabangen=I  gaze  at  it. 
Formation  of  verbs  from  one  or  more  root-syllables; 
e.  g.,  misk,  refers  to  red. 
miskoba2,"=red  leaf. 

miskobaga=there  are  red  leaves  on  a  tree. 
miskokinjc=red-hot  coals. 
miskonigade=it  is  painted  red. 
miskosi=:it  is  red  (some  animate  object). 
miskotchiss=red  turnip ;  i.  e.,  beet-root.  j 

miskondibe=his  head  is  red. 
miskwa=it  is  red  (some  inanimate  object). 
miskwabigan=red  clay. 
miskwabigin=red  flannel. 
miskwabik=red  metal ;  i.  e.,  copper. 
miskwabo=red  fluid ;  i.  e.,  chocolate. 
miskw^adissij2;e=he  dves  red. 
iniskwingwe=he  has  a  red  face. 


a 
a 


CHIPPEWA    LANGUAGE. 


453 


In  Baraga's  distionary  seventy-five  words  are  given, 
conipouiided  with  the  rudieal  sylhible,  inis'k==red.  Many 
more  might  be  added.  The  same  is  true  of  eountloss  other 
radical  syllables,  referring  to  color,  warmth,  coldness, 
goodness,  badness,  etc.  Hence,  the  Chippewa  language 
has  a  superabundance  of  words  to  express  every  kind  of 
action  and  condition  of  being.  It  contains  thousands  o* 
words  rol  found  in  our  modern  languages  and  which  we 
must  give  in  a  circumlocutory  form.  It  is  highly  expres- 
sive and  euphonic.  As  a  rule,  after  every  consonant  fol- 
lows a  vowel.  Only  such  consonants  are  cojnbined  in  a 
syllable  as  are  easily  pronounced  together.  It  is  very 
plastic  and  new  words  could  be  coined  from  existing  root- 
syllables.  In  one  word,  it  is  a  beautiful,  regular,  expres- 
sive language,  rich  in  words. 


I 


I 


Historical  and  Biographical  Notes 


4i. 


Ijr 


Ull 


AN    INTERESTTNG    ARTICLE    ON    THE    LIFE    AND    LABORS    OF 

BISnOr  BARAGA,  COPIED  BY  ''tHE  i/aNSE  SENTINEL^* 

FROM  THE  '^GLADSTONE  DELTA/' 


The  editor  of  the  "L' Anse  Sentinel"  remarks : 

"The  following,  pertaining  to  Father  Baraga,  is  taken 
from  the  ^Gladstone  Delta'  of  the  ISth  ult.,  but  the  name 
of  the  writer  was  not  given. 

"Baraga  county,  next  door  to  Houghton,  was  named 
after  Bishop  Baraga,  of  recent  missionary  memory.  This 
reverend  name  is  most  intimately  connected  witli  the  pres- 
ent mining  epoch  of  our  peninsula.  It  is,  in  fact,  the  chief 
link  that  connects  our  present  with  our  past  in  the  annalb 
of  the  missions,  and  in  the  story,  yet  untold,  of  the  steps 
taken  by  th©  pioneers  of  this  period  to  ascertain  and  make 
known  the  wonderful  mineral  and  forest  resources  of  this 
strip  of  ^Superior.' 

"The  Rt.  Kev.  Father  Baraga  was  born  in  Austria  in 
1797.  His  family  was  an  old  and  highly  respected  one, 
and  relatives  of  Marquette's  first  bishop  still  reside  in 
Treffen  Castle,  the  place  of  his  birth.  He  studied  at  the 
University  of  Vienna,  and  soon  showed  that  unusual  com- 
bination of  a  great  love  of  study  and  meditation  and  a 
decided  penchant  for  action.  His  sole  aim  at  college  was 
to  direct  all  the  energies  of  a  strong  mind  and  an  ardent 
zeal  to  the  struggle  against  error,  doubt,  and  ignorance. 
One  whose  sole  passions  were  thus  to  instruct,  to  alleviate 
misery,  and  to  bestow  blessings  to  the  full  extent  of  his 
abilities  and  his  means,  could  be  nothing  but  a  missionary, 
and  this  zeal  for  the  conversion  of  souls,  together  with  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 


455 


ABORS    OF 


great  linguistic  gift,  and  an  iron  constitution,  drew  the 
student  naturally  to  the  field  where  the  obstacles  were  the 
greatest  and  where  his  uncommon  powers  would  be 
afforded  full  scope. 

''With  the  departure  from  the  peninsula  of  the  Jesuit 
Fathers  and  their  Indian  neophytes,  fleeing  before  the  con- 
quering Iroquois,  and  the  destruction  by  fire  of  the  mis- 
sion-buildings to  save  them  from  desecration,  the  first 
chapter  in  the  story  of  the  conversion  of  the  Indian  was 
closed.  Young  Father  Baraga  determined  to  open  another 
chapter  in  this  story  and  he  came  to  America  for  the  pur- 
pose of  fitting  himself  for  the  Indian  missions,  leaving  his 
bright  prospects  of  advancement  and  success  in  his  own 
land.  He  remained  at  the  Cincinnati  seminary  long 
enough  to  become  acquainted  with  ^the  lay  of  the  land'  and 
the  rudiments  of  the  languages  he  must  perforce  use  in 
his  new  field,  and  there  began  the  work  of  bringing  the 
savages  under  the  influence  of  the  Gospel — a  work  carried 
on  by  Marquette's  successors  up  to  sixty  years  before  the 
^dis»ruption.' 

"He  begpn  his  labors  at  Arbre  Croche  (now  Harbor 
Springs)  in  the  lower  peninsula.  The  mission  became  the 
rallying  point  of  the  Ottawas  for  many  miles  around.  In 
thirty  months  he  had  mastered  the  language,  published 
prayer  and  hymn  books,  and  established  the  mission  on  a 
solid  footing,  and,  securing  a  successor,  he  proceeded  to 
the  Grand,  where  he  found  the  Ottawas  fast  becoming 
^good'  Indians,  owing  to  the  demoralizing  influence  exer- 
cised over  them  by  bad  whites  in  their  neighborhood.  Here 
he  had  hard  work  and  still  wonderful  success.  Having 
established  this  mission  also  on  a  permanent  footing,  he 
left  it  to  other  hands,  and  started  on  a  long  and  toilsome 
journey  to  the  Ojibways,  who  had  settled  near  La  Pointe 
or  Ashland.  It  took  Father  Baraga  three  weeks  to  make 
the  trip  from  the  'Soo'  to  Ashland.  Eight  ^''  urs  were 
spent  here,  during  which  his  extraordinary  capacity  for 


v. 


456 


APPENDIX. 


leamins: 


m 


i 


I' 


Hi' 


I 


111 


ii'A 


II 


fjfe 


I 


ii||4-: 


:■ 


if 


f   :  ■ 


languages- 


-he    spoke    seven    or   eight   modem 


tongues  fluently — enabled  him  to  compile  and  print  a  Bib- 
lical history  and  books  of  prayer  for  his  flock.  Again  hav- 
ing settled  his  charge,  he  accepted  an  invitation  of  the  Ke- 
weenaw band  and  founded  his  large  mission  near  L'Anse. 
Here  his  task  was  to  reform  the  Ojibwa,  ruined  by  traders* 
fire-water,  and  to  induce  them  to  learn  tillage  and  farming. 
His  o*vn  lack  of  the  knowledge  of  farming  impeded  this 
part  of  his  work,  and  it  was  only  after  a  successor  came 
to  him,  who  knew  farming,  that  the  settlement  really  be- 
came stable.  Father  Baraga  bought  this  land  himself  and 
gave  each  Indian  a  tract  and  a  good  log  house.  He  still 
worked  at  his  prayer-books  and  Biblical  history,  and  here 
completed  his  magnum  opus,  the  great  Otchipwe  gram- 
mar and  dictionary,  the  first  ever  published,  and  the 
standard  work  to  this  day. 

"In  all  his  missions.  Father  Baraga  was  the  instructor 
of  his  flock  in  the  three  'R's,'  as  well  as  in  the  religious 
sphere.  His  two  trips  to  Europe  were  made  to  collect  for 
his  missions,  and  he  never  returned  empty-handed. 

"The  founding  of  the  L'Anse  mission  was  almost  con- 
temporary with  the  opening  of  the  copper  mines  and  this 
meant  more  work  for  the  Father,  as  he  was  the  only  priest 
near.  For  eight  years  he  visited  the  copper-country  from 
L'Anst,  traveling  by  canoe  or  on  snow-shoes,  through 
trackless  forests,  carrying  his  altar-furniture  with  him. 
S.  B.  Ely,  son  of  the  iron  country  pioneer,  speaks  of  the 
welcome  extended  the  missionary  by  everybody  on  his  ar- 
rival at  a  mining  camp,  and  of  the  pleasure  of  listening  to 
his  incisive  addresses  in  the  three  languages  spoken  by  his 
followers. 

"Father  Baraga's  hope  was  to  die  amongst  his  Indians ; 
but  when  the  peninsula  became  a  diocese  he  naturally  be- 
came its  first  bishop,  over  flocks  mostly  gathered  by  him- 
self. 

"Four  years  before  his  lamented  death,  he  was  exposed 


BIOGRAPHICAL   NOTES. 


457 


to  rain  and  cold  during  an  eight  days'  boat  journey,  and 
from  the  effects  of  this  exposure  he  never  fully  recovered. 
During  his  last  illness,  his  condition  was,  of  course,  an 
object  of  great  concern  to  all  who  knew  and  admired  the 
man  for  his  self-denial  and  self-sacrifice.  The  Mr.  Ely 
already  quoted  called  and  tried  to  insist  on  the  bishop's 
taking  some  comfort  during  his  illness ;  but  the  bishop 
simply  replied  that  he  was  better  housed  than  his  Master 
was,  and  he  would  have  no  improvement.  A  big-hearted 
Irish  woman,  to  whom  Mr.  Ely  complained,  stormed  her 
way  into  the  presence  of  her  beloved  pastor,  and  insisted 
on  leaving  a  sum  of  money  for  some  decent  nourishment. 
The  bishop,  fast  failing,  tried  to  make  his  attendant  un- 
derstand he  wanted  something,  and  at  length  Father  Ter- 
horst,  his  successor  at  the  mission,  asked  if  it  was  the 
money,  and  the  bishop  nodded.  The  money  was  brought, 
and  the  dying  apostle  signed  to  the  Father  to  take  it  for 
the  mission,  and  thus  satisfied,  he  died  absolutely  penni- 
less, his  large  patrimony  and  revenues  all  having  gone  to 
charitable  and  religious  purposes. 

"Among  the  pioneer  men  of  renown  of  the  peninsula, 
the  name  of  Baraga  deserves  special  remembrance.  A 
truly  apostolic  man,  who  counted  neither  ease  nor  life 
itself  dear,  so  that  he  might  faithfully  follow  his  Divine 
Master  in  the  care  of  souls.  His  work  and  his  memory 
will  remain  with  us  forever." 


A  LAKE  SUPEEIOR  HISTORICAL  SKETCH. 

MASSACRE  OF  A  DACOTA  PEACE  DELEGATION^  AT  SAULT  STE. 
MARIE^  UPPER  MICHIGAN,  IN  THE  SPRING  OF  1674. 

The  present  year  must  not  be  allowed  to  pass  without 
one  of  our  periodicals  offering  to  the  friends  of  domestic 
history  the  details  of  an  event  which,  just  two  hundred 


"::   I'm, 


458 


APPENDIX 


11 


}', 


years  ago,  caused  considerable  emotion  among  tiie  savage 
inhabitants  of  Upper  Michigan,  and  proved  a  turning 
point  in  their  progress  toward  civilization. 

Under  the  heading,  "]\Iassacre  of  Ten  ISadouessi  Am- 
bassadors and  Twenty  Other  Indians  at  the  House  of  Ste. 
Marie  du  Sault,"  Father  Dablon,  then  superior  of  the 
Jesuit  missions  in  "I^ew  France,"  relates  as  follows  (the 
words  between  crotchets  being  our  own) : 

"The  Nadouessi  (Is"adowessi,  Dacota  or  Sioux),  an  ex- 
tremely numerous  and  eminently  w^arlike  tribe,  were  the 
common  enemies  of  all  those  Indians  comprised  under  the 
name  of  Outaoucas  (Ottawas)  or  Upper  Algonquins.  They 
carried  their  arms  even  far  to  the  north,  and  waging  war 
against  the  Killistinons  (Kinoshtino  or  Cree  Indians)  who 
inhabited  those  parts,  made  themselves  everywhere  for- 
midable by  their  boldness,  their  numbers,  and  their  skill 
in  combat,  in  w^hich,  besides  other  weapons,  they  make  use 
of  stone  knives.  They  always  carry  two  of  them,  one  stick- 
ing in  the  belt,  the  other  suspended  from  their  hairs.  How- 
ever, a  war  party  from  Ste.  Marie  du  Sault  having  sur- 
prised them  in  their  own  country,  and  captured  eighty  of 
them,  obliged  them  to  sue  for  peace.  Consequently  they 
sent  ten  of  their  bravest  men  to  tlie  Sault  to  negotiate. 
They  were  received  with  joy  as  soon  as  the  object  of  their 
mission  became  knowm.  Onlv  the  Killistinons,  who  had 
lately  arrived,  and  others  called  Missisaquis  (from  the 
north  shore  of  Lake  Huron,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Missisa- 
gning),  not  only  showed  dissatisfaction,  but  also  resolved 
to  prevent  the  conclusion  of  the  peace,  and  even  to  murder 
those  ten  envoys.  This  necessitated  their  being  admitted 
to  the  French  house  built  for  the  use  of  the  missionaries. 

Father  Gabriel  Druillettes  profited  of  this  opportunity 
to  instruct  them  in  the  mysteries  of  our  faith.  They  lis- 
tened with  so  much  docility  that,  at  the  end  of  the  instruc- 
tion, they  went  on  their  knees,  and,  folding  their  hands, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   NOTES. 


450 


called  upon  Jesus,  the  master  of  life,  just  now  made  known 
to  them. 

In  the  meantime  the  Indians  flocked  to  the  French 
house,  one  party  to  make  peace  with  the  I^adouessi,  the 
other  to  hinder  its  conclusion.  Every  possible  precaution 
was  taken  to  prevent  those  that  entered  from  bringing 
along  arms;  but,  as  the  crowd  was  extremely  large,  five 
or  six  slipped  in  without  being  deprived  of  their  knives. 
It  was  one  ©f  the  latter,  a  Killistinon,  who  gave  rise  to 
the  ensuing  broil ;  for  approaching  a  Nadouessi,  knife  in 
hand,  he  said,  "Thou  art  afraid,"  and  threatened  to  strike 
him.  The  Xadouessi,  without  being  startled,  replied,  in 
a  haughty  tone  and  with  undaunted  mien,  *'If  thou  be- 
lievest  that  I  tremble,  strike  straight  at  the  heart;"  and, 
feeling  himself  stricken,  cried  out  to  those  of  his  nation, 
"Brethren,  they  kill  us."  At  these  words  those  men,  fired 
with  the  desire  of  revenge,  and  withal  very  vigorous  and 
tall,  rose  up  and  struck  with  their  knives  at  every  Indian 
present,  without  discriminating  between  Killistinons  and 
Sauteux  (Ojibwas),  in  the  belief  that  they  had  all  equally 
conspired  to  murder  them.  It  was  not  very  difficult  for 
them  to  make,  in  a  short  time,  a  great  caniage,  considering 
that  they  found  the  crowd,  who  expected  nothing  less  than 
such  an  attack,  unprovided  with  arms. 

The  Kilistinon  who  had  begam  the  quarrel  was  one  of 
the  first  that  was  pierced,  and,  with  several  others,  thrown 
dead  on  the  place  (inside  the  house).  Then  the  Nadouessi 
placed  themselves  at  the  door  to  guard  it,  and  to  stab  those 
that  would  fly;  but  as  they  remarked  that  several  had  al- 
ready escaped  and  gone  in  search  of  arms,  they  shiTt  the 
door,  determined  to  defend  themselves  until  the  l^.st 
breath.  In  fact,  they  posted  themselves  at  the  win- 
dows, and  having  by  chance  found  some  guns  and  rmmu- 
nition,  they  used  them  to  keep  at  bay  their  enemies,  who 
attempted  to  burn  them  by  burning  the  house  in  wh^ch  they 
were  locked  up.    They  killed  some  who  w^ent  too  near ;  but, 


it 


460 


APPENDIX. 


U 


^i■ 


li  > 


)  !i,. 


!|. 


■■  1, 


L 


in  spite  of  all  tlieir  efforts,  some  others  approached  the 
house  and  having  piled  up  against  it  straw  and  birch  bark 
canoes,  set  fire  to  them,  and  thns  soon  placed  the  Nadonessi 
in  danger  of  being  consumed  by  the  flames.  This  obliged 
them  to  give  a  last  proof  of  their  courage ;  for  all  ten  of 
them  came  forth  with  the  arms  in  their  hands,  and,  with 
incredible  promptness,  threw  themselves  into  a  neighbor- 
ing palisade  hut,  from  which  they  kept  up  the  defense, 
and  continued  to  kill  as  long  as  their  ammunition  lasted ; 
but  this  failing,  they  were  overwhelmed  by  the  great  num- 
bers of  Indians,  who  fired  at  them,  and  all  were  killed  on 
the  spot,  together  Avith  two  women  who  had  accompanied 
them.  A  third  one  was  spared,  having  been  discovered  to 
be  only  their  slave,  and  an  Algonquin  by  nation. 

During  all  that  tumult  and  massacre,  the  fire  wdiich 
the  Indians  had  set  to  the  house  of  the  missionaries  grew 
rapidly,  and  in  spite  of  all  that  could  be  done,  it  soon  con- 
sumed the  building,  which  was  only  of  wood,  and  placed 
the  new  chapel,  which  stood  not  far  from  it,  in  great  dan- 
ger. However,  it  w^as  saved  by  great  exertions.  It  was  a 
frightful  sight  to  see  so  many  dead  and  so  much  blood  run- 
ning within  so  narrow  a  space,  and  to  hear  the  shrieks  of 
those  who  excited  each  other  to  the  combat,  find  the  groans 
of  the  wounded,  amidst  the  confusion  of  an  incensed  rab- 
ble that  hardly  knew  what  they  were  doing. 

Our  Indians  bewailed  forty  of  their  own,  partly  dead, 
partly  wounded,  among  whom  were  some  of  their  chiefs 
and  foremost  men.  The  missionaries  on  their  part  had 
great  cause  for  grief,  losing  so  soon  the  hope  which  the 
peace  just  about  to  be  concluded  had  made  them  conceive, 
of  going  to  preach  the  ^'ospel  to  the  Nadouessi.  Besides, 
they  saw  themselves  abandoned  by  the  Indians  of  the 
country,  who,  fearing  lest  the  Nadouessi,  on  seeing  their 
men  loiter,  might  suspect  their  fate  and  come  to  revenge 
their  dead,  dispersed  and  left  the  missionaries  exposed  to 
the  fury  of  their  enemies.     Moreover,  besides  the  daily 


BIOGRAPHICAL   NOTES. 


461 


danger  in  which  they  were  of  being  massacred,  not  only  at 
the  Sault,  but  also  in  all  other  places  where  they  were  on 
mission,  the  progress  which  the  gospel  began  to  make 
through  them  was  greatly  cheeked  for  some  time. 

God  has  not  failed  to  derive  glory  from  those  misfor- 
tunes, and  to  inake  use  of  them,  both  for  the  salvation  of 
some  souls,  and  for  the  showing  forth  of  the  extraordinary 
efforts  of  His  omnipotence;  for  several  of  those  that  had 
been  dangerously  wounded  asked  for  baptism,  and  having 
received  it,  were  healed. 


diich 


At  a  meeting  of  the  Ottawas  of  Arbre  Croche,  held  at 
Mackinac  on  January  14,  1829,  to  consult  with  their  Rep- 
resentative in  Congress,  one  of  their  head-chiefs  spoke  as 
follows : 

"My  Father !  The  headmen  of  the  people,  who  are 
here  assembled  around  you,  want  to  open  their  hearts  to 
you.  They  have  seen  here  and  in  Arbre  Croche  their 
bishop  (Rt.  Rev.  Edward  Fenwick,  of  Cincinnati).  He 
has  given  them  a  Catholic  priest  to  reside  with  them.  The 
chief  men  here  before  your  eyes  request  you  to  help  them 
in  this  important  undertaking.  My  Father !  We  let  you 
know  that  pious  women  are  with  us  under  the  supervision 
of  our  priest,  to  teach  our  women  and  children  to  write  and 
work,  as  also  to  do  the  will  of  the  Great  Spirit.  My 
Father !  We  have  at  present  a  chapel  and  a  school  in  bad 
condition  and  we  would  thank  you  very  much  if  you  would 
help  us  to  fix  them  up  better.  Father !  We  hope  that  the 
President  of  the  United  States  will  help  us.  Moreover, 
the  here  assembled  headmen  of  our  nation  request  me  to 
tell  you  that  they  are  firmly  resolved  to  sell  no  more  land 
to  the  government  of  the  United  States.  My  Father !  If 
any  of  our  red  brethren  be  foolish  enough  to  be  willing  to 
sell  their  lands,    we  on  our  part  will  never  sell  ours. 


if 


V,' 

■  ■■'-                 I: 

1^     fJ. 

i 

I'^Mf 

462 


APPENDIX. 


Should,  however,  any  of  us  make  such  an  offering  to  you 
to  cede  their  lands,  we  pray  you  to  pay  no  attention  to  them 
and  to  drive  them  away  from  your  door." 


^lir 


i|if 


I  I 
I'. 

it' 

V  , 


fl!  ' 

El 

hi 


n 


i\. 


11^ 


I 

U  >i 


NOTES. 


In  his  work,  '^History  of  the  Ottawa  and  Chippewa 
Indians  of  Michigan,"  by  A.  J.  Blackbird,  the  author 
asserts  on  page  42  that  his  brother,  William  Macatebinessi 
— Blackbird — was  assassinated  at  Eonie  whilst  studying 
at  college.  As  this  assertion  seemed  to  be  entirely  ground- 
less, as  the  young  man  was  universally  beloved  and  re- 
spected by  his  fellow  students,  the  writer  wrote  to  the  Pro- 
paganda at  Rome  inquiring  for  particulars  of  the  death 
of  said  Wm.  Macatebinessi.  Under  date  of  February  18, 
1896,  the  following  answer  was  sent  to  him : 

''Rev.  Father — I  received  your  letter  of  the  25th  of 
last  month,  in  which  you  ask  for  particulars  in  regard  to 
the  death  of  young  William  Macatebinessi,  of  Arbre 
Croche  (Michigan),  United  States  of  America,  who  died 
at  Rome  June  25,  1833,  whilst  he  was  a  student  of  the 
Urban  College.  After  opportune  inquiries  it  was  ascer- 
tained that  there  is  only  a  letter  extant  by  which  the  noti- 
fication of  his  death  was  communicated  to  Rt.  Rev.  Fred- 
eric Rese,  Bishop  of  Detroit. 

"Herewith  1  send  you  an  abstract  of  said  letter,  which 
is  conformable  to  the  original. 

''A.  ARCHB.  SARISSERN,  Secrt." 
The  following  is  a  true  copy  of  the  letter  sent  to  Bishop 
Rese: 

Rome,  July  13,  1833. 
"Most  Illustrious  and  Most  Rev.  Lord — I  am  sorry  to 
notify  Your  Lordship  of  the  loss  sustained  a  few  days  ago 
of  the  good  young  man,  William  Macatebinessi  of  the  Ot- 
tawa tribe,  native  of  Arbre  Croche,  who  was  sent  by  you 
to  Rome,  was  received  among  the  alumni  of  this  Urban 
College.     Some  time  ago  he  complained  of  an  internal 


L'  IIP' 


«!■■  )|',' 


464 


APrENDIX. 


pain,  as  a  consequence,  as  lie  said,  of  an  accident  that  hap- 
pened to  him  in  America,  when  a  wheel  passed  over  his 
breast.  On  the  morning  of  the  25th  of  last  June  the  rup- 
ture of  an  artery  just  in  the  aforesaid  part  of  the  body  re- 
duced liim  within  a  short  time  to  tho  extreme  and  took  him 
from  this  life.  I  give  this  notice  to  Your  Lordship  for 
your  information,  and  that  with  due  circumspection  you 
may  communicate  it  to  the  young  man's  parents. 

"In  the  meantime  I  pray  God  that  He  may  long  pre- 
serve and  prosper  you. 

"To  Mens.  Frederic -Rese,  Bishop  of  Detroit." 


:m    1 


I    ' 


u 


li'i 


Total  contributed  by  Leopoldine  Society  towards  Amer- 
ican dioceses  from  1829  to  184C : 

Udltimore 43,000  fl. 

Philadelphia    23,500  fl. 

Richmond 12,000  fl. 

Charleston   61,00®  fl. 

Pittsburg   13,000  fl. 

Cincinnati   1 15,495  fl. 

Louisville  20,000  fl. 

St.  Louis  44,000  fl. 

Little  Rock  20,000  fl. 

Chicago    9,000  fl. 

Vincennes  57,800  fl. 

Detroit    46,000  fl. 

Milwaukee  8,500  fl. 

Boston    16,000  fl. 

Hartford   9,000  fl. 

New  York 28,500  fl. 

Mobile    32,000  fl. 

New  Orleans    10,000  fl. 

Natchez  12,000  fl. 

ISTashville 18,000  fl. 

Dubuque   23,000  fl. 

Kingston  ( Upper  Canada ) 6,000  fl. 

Vicariate  of  Texas 7,000  fl. 

Trinidad    (Antilles)    4,000  fl. 

638,795  fl. 
For  Jesuit  and  Redemptionist  Missions  and  individual  Mis- 
sionaries    48,418  fl. 

687,213  fl. 
Pamphlet  19—1846. 


ir;  'i 


NOTES. 


4G5 


Amounts  of  money  contributed  by  the  Lcopoldine  So- 
ciety of  Vienna,  Austria,  for  the  Catholic  missions  and 
dioceses  of  the  United  States  and  Canada : 

1830,  "  "  "  34,420  H. 

1831,  "  «  "  ir),78(}  H. 

1832,  "  "  "  47,000  11. 

1833,  "  "  "  53,270  H. 

1834,  "  "  "  32,000  II. 

1835,  "  "  "  30,020  H. 

1830,  "  '•  "  34,200 11. 

1837,  "  "  "    40,840 11. 

1838,  "  "  "    48,07111. 

1839,  "  '•  "    30,400 11. 

1840,  "  "  "    37,204  11. 

1841,  "  "  "    47,720  11. 

1842,  "  "  "    39,001  a. 

1843,  ''  "  "    37,.')23  11. 

1844,  "  "  "    41,233  11. 

1845,  "  "  "    44,090 11. 

1840,  "  "  "    43,970 11. 

1850,  "  "  "    43,301  fl. 

1850,  (no  contributions  during  1847-'48-'49) 35,523  fl. 

1851,  "  **  "  38,29111. 

1852,  "  "  "  .30,314  fl. 

1853,  "  "  "  31,900  fl. 

1854,  "  "  «  14,704  fl. 

1855,  "  "  "  47,25011. 

1850,  "  "  "  51,755  fl. 

1857,  "     "       "    12,457  fl. 

1858,  "     "       "    47,773  fl. 

1859,  "      "       "    2,445  fl. 

1800,  "  "  «  50,531  fl. 

1801,  "  "  "  30,400  fl. 

1802,  "  "  "  19,000  fl. 

18G3,  "  "  «  19,000  fl. 

1804,  "  "  "  20,070  fl. 

1805,  "  "  "  21,990  fl. 

1800,  "  "  «  18,150  fl. 

1807,  "  "  "  21,139  fl. 

1,244,085  fl. 

i^otes  taken  from  the  Baptismal  Register  of  Harbor 
Springs,  formerly  called  Arbre  Croche,  by  Bishop  Baraga. 

"On  the  28th  day  of  May,  in  the  year  1831,  the  Most 
Illustrious  and  Reverend  Edward  Dominic  Fenwick, 
Bishop  of  Cincinnati,  brought  me,  the  undersigned,  a  secu- 
lar priest  born  in  Illyria,  a  province  of  the  Austrian  Em- 
pire, here  to  perform  the  office  of  a  missionary  among  tho 


im 


APPENDIX. 


li  i 


w 


Indians  of  this  region.  He  himself,  the  Most  Illustrious 
and  liev.  Bishop,  remained  here  from  the  above-named  day 
until  the  3d  of  June,  in  which  time  he  baptized  two  adults 
and  twenty-six  children. 

"My  predecessor,  Kev.  Peter  John  Dejean,  a  French 
secular  priest,  whom  Very  Bishop  Fenwick  sent  here  in  the 
year  1820,  baptized  very  many  adults  and  children,  being 
the  first  missionary  staying  and  residing  here,  but  he  had 
no  Baptismal  Register ;  for  which  reason  this  begins  only 
from  the  20th  day  of  May,  1831, 

"Note.  By  the  name :  Arbre  Croche  is  meant  in  this 
book  the  village  here,  where  the  Indians  built  the  parochial 
church  of  St.  Peter  and  the  dwelling-house  of  the  mission- 
ary. By  the  name  Old  Arbre  Croche  are  meant,  however, 
all  the  dwelling-places  of  the  Indians  from  the  place  of  the 
parochial  church  to  the  chapel  of  St.  Paul,  which  dwelling- 
places  are  comprehended  in  the  Indian  name:  Wagana- 
kisi,'^ 

"FREDERIC  BARAGA, 

Priest." 

"The  church  of  Arbre  Croche,  lately  built  by  the  In- 
dians alone,  was  lawfully  blessed  by  me,  the  undersigned, 
missionary  of  this  place,  on  the  25th  of  May,  1851,  in  vir- 
tue of  episcopal  delegation,  in  honor  of  Our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  as  youth  in  the  temple." 

"FRANCIS  PIERZ, 

Roman  Catholic  Missionary." 

Wherefore  this  mission  shall  be  called  hereafter  'Mis- 
sio  S.  S.  Adolescentiae  Jesu.'  " 

4-  FREDERIC, 

Bishop." 


Notes  in  regard  to  the  origin  of  the  La  Pointe  Mission, 
by  Rev.  Frederic  Baraga,  copied  from  the  Baptismal  Reg- 
ister of  said  mission. 


k 


NOTES. 


467 


"Tlio  \iiHk'i>igiK'(l  ininHionnry  Ijiid  the  first  foundation 
of  the  cli\ii'ch  of  thin  mission  iniincdiately  after  his  arrival, 
i.  e.j  on  the  JJd  (hjy  of  August,  in  the  year  IHJjr),  and  on  tho 
Otli  day  of  the  same  month  he  celebrated  MasvS  in  thia 
church  for  the  first  time,  although  it  was  still  in  an  imper- 
fect state.  llo\vever,  in  order  to  finish  this  church  and  to 
firmly  establish  the  whole  mission,  he  left  on  the  2'.)th  of 
September,  in  the  year  188(),  and  went  to  Eui'ope,  where 
through  the  contributions  of  ])iou8  benefactors  he  receive<l 
funds  to  finii-h  the  church  and  pastoral  residence  of  this 
mission.  On  the  8th  of  October,  IS.'H,  he  returned  from 
his  journey  to  this  mission,  and  after  many  labors  and  tril>- 
iilations  he  completed  this  church  and  the  annexed  parson- 
age in  the  month  of  August,  1838. 

*^0n  the  2d  of  September  of  tlie  same  year,  which  was 
the  first  F  mday  of  Septend)er,  this  church  w^as  dedicated 
to  God  under  the  name  of  St.  Joseph.  On  the  7th  of  tho 
same  month,  our  bishop,  Kt.  Kev.  Frederic  Kese,  came  to 
this  mission  for  the  first  time,  and  on  the  J)th  he  confirmed 
one  hundred  and  twelve  neophytes  and  Canadians. 

"This  mission  began  on  the  28th  day  of  July,  in  the 
year  1835.  For  on  that  day  the  undersigned  missionary, 
born  in  Illyria,  a  province  of  Austria,  landed  at  this  island, 
which  they  call  St.  Magdaien  Island,  sometimes  also  St. 
JVIichael's  Island,  which  prior  to  that  day  the  'beautiful 
feet  of  those  evangelizing  peace,  evangelizing  good  things' 
had  never  yet  trodden. 

"The  undersigned  missionary  found  here  some  Cana- 
dian Catholics  in  the  employ  of  the  traders  and  a  few  Cath- 
olic half-Indians,  who  had  been  baptized  in  the  Mackinac 
mission ;  all  the  rest  'sat  vet  in  the  darkness  and  shadow  of 
death. 

"The  missionary  was  reeeived  v/ith  great  joy  on  the 
island.  Some  immediately  offered  him  their  children  to 
be  baptized  ai^d  themselves  to  be  instructed  in  the  Catholic 
religion,  which  was  done  and  daily  was  increased  'the  mul- 


468 


APPENDIX. 


'I 


it. 


titude  of  tliosc.  ulio  believed  in  the  Lord,'  who  after  the 
necessary  instruction  were  regenerated  by  Baptism  unto 
life  eternal. 

"In  the  year  1841  the  undersigned  missionary  caused 
a  new  church  to  be  constructed  (the  old  one  being  demol- 
ished, which  had  been  too  badly  constructed),  and  at  the 
same  time  he  built  it  there  where  it  was  nearer  to  the 
greater  part  of  the  Catholic  congregation.  In  the  month 
of  July  of  the  same  year  this  church  was  finished,  and  on 
the  first  Sunday  of  August  the  undensigned  missionary 
dedicated  it  to  God  under  the  name  of  the  same  saint,  St. 
Joseph. 

"On  the  4th  of  October,  1813,  the  undersigned  mission- 
ary departed  from  this  mission  in  order  to  found,  with  the 
help  of  God,  a  new  mission  at  L'Anse  with  the  approbation 
of  the  Most  Illustrious  and  Kev.  Bishop  Peter  Paul  Le- 
fevre.  On  the  27tli  of  July,  in  the  year  1844,  he  again 
returned  to  this  mission,  not,  indeed,  to  reside  there  per- 
manently, but  to  announce  during  some  weeks  the  word  of 
God  to  this  congregation  and  to  administer  to  them  the 
holy  sacraments.  On  the  14th  of  August  of  the  same  year 
the  Most  Illustrious  and  Rov.  John  Martin  Ilenni,  first 
bishop  of  Milwaukee,  canonically  visited  this  church,  and 
on  the  IGtli  day  of  the  same  month  he  confirmed  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-two  Indians  and  Canadians.  On  the  3d 
of  September  of  the  same  year  the  undersigned  missionnry 
returned  again  to  his  new  mission,  and  only  on  the  28th  of 
June,  of  the  year  1845,  did  he  visit  this  mission  of  St. 
Joseph  again  to  exercise  the  care  of  souls  for  some  time." 

"PREDEPvIC  BARAGA, 

Missionary." 


^'f. 


Baraga's  youngest  sister,  Antonia,  was  born  in  the 
castle  of  Treffen  February  4,  1803.  On  :^^ay  31,  1824, 
she  married  Felix  von  Iloeffern,  son  of  Heribert  Hoeffern 


NOTES. 


469 


von  Salfekl,  Knight  of  the  Holy  Eoman  Empire.  F.  Bai*- 
aga  himself  performed  the  marriage-ceremony..  His  ad- 
dress to  the  married  conple  is  still  preserved  by  Eev. 
Joseph  Benkovic.*  The  writer  is  imder  great  obligations 
to  him  for  many  interesting  particulars  concerning  Bar- 
agp's  parentage,  early  life,  and  labors  in  St.  Martin  and 
Metlika. 

Felix  von  Hoeffern  died  childless.  After  Baraga's  de- 
parturc  for  the  Indian  mission,  Antonia  entered  a  convent 
in  Paris  to  prepare  herself,  especially  by  the  study  of  the 
French  language,  to  be  of  service  to  her  llev.  brother  in  the 
Indian  missionary  field.  When  Baraga  was  on  his  way  re- 
turning to  America  in  1837  she  joined  him  at  Havre  de 
Grace  and  came  with  him  to  La  Pointe. 

In  a  letter  which  she  wrote  in  Itackinac  on  the  8th  of 
September,  1837,  to  her  sister  Amalia,  she  says  that  it  was 
her  intention  to  serve  the  Indians  as  teacher  for  their  chil 
dren  and  to  instruct  the  Indian  women  in  washing,  cook- 
ing, and  general  housework.  Speaking  of  her  Reverend 
brother,  she  savs : 

"Our  dear  Frederic  is  so  universally  knowni  that  every- 
one speaks  of  him  and  knows  something  to  tell  about  him. 
I  have  heard  that  supernatural  things  are  ascribed  to  him, 
things  which  only  a  special  favorite  of  God  can  perform. 
Every  Indian  is  acquainted  with  him.  In  Mackinac  were 
a  great  many  Indians,  when  they  sold  their  land;  they 
came  from  five  different  provinces  (states)  ;  and  everyone 
wished  to  speaTi  with  him  and  to  see  him.  I  have  visited 
many  of  them  in  their  cabins.  When  they  heard  that  I 
was  a  sister  of  Baraga,  they  all  shook  hands  with  me, 
laughed,  and  gazed  at  me  as  long  as  I  was  in  the  hut,  which 
I  always  left  with  tears  in  my  eyes." 

Some  of  the  old  Indians  still  remember  Baraga's  sister 
and  how  she  kept  house  for  her  saintly  brother.  The  cli- 
mate of  Lake  Superior  being  too  severe  for  her  frail  con- 
stitution, she  was  obliged  to  leave  La  Pointe.     As  to  her 


470 


APPENDIX. 


subsequent  career  and  the  time,  place  and  manner  of  her 
death,  the  writer  could  find  nothing  reliable. 

The  following  acrosticon  was  composed  by  Father 
Baraga  at  his  sister  Antonia's  departure  from  La  Pointe, 
where  she  had  kept  house  for  him  two  years  after  his  re- 
turn from  Europe  in  1837.  It  was  given  us  by  Rev.  Ant 
J.  Rezek,  of  Houghton,  Mich.,  to  whom  we  are  very  thank- 
ful for  this  proof  of  kind  interest  in  our  work. 

Angel  Boshji  naj  te  vedno  spremlja, 
'Nie  '  arlasse  Dich  des  Himmels  Schutz, 
Tuta  sis  et  salva  in  aeternum, 
Observez  tou jours  la  loi  de  Dieu 
JS^uov^o  sempre  sia  il  Vostro  zelo 
Imitate  the  Saviour's  holy  life, 
Angwamisin,  mine  bimadisin. 

Mission  zum  hi.  Joseph  in  N.  Amerika,  im  Juli,  1839. 
Dein  Dich  ewig  liebender  Bruder, 

FRIEDRICII  BARAGA,  m.  pr. 


In  the  parish  records  of  L'Anse  we  find  the  following 
entries : 

"The  undersigned  missionary  laid  the  foundation  of 
this  mission,  with  the  help  of  God,  on  the  24th  of  May, 
in  the  year  1843,  on  v/hich  day  he  arrived  here  and  re- 
mained twenty  days  among  the  Indians  of  this  place. 
Some  believed  the  word  inimediateiy  and  were  baptized 
after  the  necessary  instruction.  But  others  said :  'If  that 
missionary  comes  again,  not  to  remain  only  for  a  few  days, 
but  to  stay  constantly  with  us,  then  we,  too,  will  receive 
the  doctrine,  which  he  i3reaches,  and  Baptism.  Where- 
fore he  came  again  on  the  24th  of  October  of  the  same 
year  and  immediately  began  to  prepare  whatever  things 
were  deemed  necessarv  for  the  firm  establishment  of  the 
mission.     With  the  special  help  of  God  the  poor  mission- 


NOTES. 


471 


ary  was  enabled  to  erect  the  church  with  adjoining  par- 
sonage, also  fifteen  small  houses  for  the  Indian  people. 
Afterwards  he  built  seven  others.  On  the  16th  day  of 
June,  1844,  which  was  the  third  (Sunday)  after  Pente- 
cost, the  Most  Holy  Sacrifice  of  the  Mass  was  offered  up 
for  the  first  time  in  this  church.  But,  of  course,  the 
church  was  then  not  finished.  But  when  it  was  com- 
pleted to  some  degree  of  perfection,  the  undersigned  mis- 
sionary solemnly  dedicated  it  on  the  first  Sunday  of  tho 
same  year  to  God  Almighty  under  the  Name  of  His  Be- 
loved Son,  Jesus,  who  with  the  Father  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  is  God  forever,  and  at  the  same  time  he  beseeched 
Him  that  He  might  mercifully  deign  to  grant  that  who- 
soever should  enter  this  church,  asking  benefits  from  Him 
in  the  Name  of  Jesus,  might  receive  what  he  faithfully 
asked,  so  that  he  might  experience  how  truly  the  Truth 
itself  spoke,  saying:  'If  you  ask  anything  of  the  Father 
in  My  name  He  will  grant  it  to  you.' 

"On  the  16th  of  July,  1846,  the  Rt.  Rev.  and  Most 
Illustrious  Peter  Paul  Lefevre,  bishop  of  Zela  and  admin- 
istrator of  the  diocese  of  Detroit,  visited  this  mission 
canonically  and  on  the  following  Sunday  confirmed 
eighty-six  Indians  in  this  church  of  the  Holy  Name  of 
Jesus." 

"FREDERIC  BARAGA, 

Missionary." 


"On  the  25th  of  September,  1854,  the  Most  Illustrious 
and  Rt.  Rev.  Baraga,  bishop  of  Amyzonia,  and  vicar- 
apostolic  of  Upper  Michigan,  canonically  visited  for  the 
first  time  this  mission,  founded  by  him,  and  on  the  fol- 
lowing Sunday,  which  was  the  first  Sunday  of  October, 
he  confirmed  forty-three  Indians  and  half-breeds." 


■a  ft 


472 


APPENDIX. 


W 


i- 


PniESTS  STATIONED  AT  DETROIT^  MICH. 

P.  Constantin  de  la  Halle 1703-170G 

P.  Dominicus  de  la  Marche 1706-1707 

Cherubin  Denieau 1707-1714 

Hiacynth  Pelifresne   1715-1718 

Calvarin,  vicar-general  of  the  mission  of  Tama- 

rnas 1718-1719 

Jean  Mercier 1718-1719 

D.  Thaumm- 1718-1719 

Pantoin  Delins .1719-1723 

P.  Bonaventura 1722-1735 

P.  Daniel 1735-1738 

P.  de  la  Richardin,  on  Bois-Blanc  Island 1738-1754 

P.  Bonaventura,  again,  in  Detroit 1738-1754 

Simple  Boqnet 1754-1782 

Payet 1782-1786 

Pierre  Frichette 1786-1796 

Michael  Levadon 1796-1802 

Gabriel  Richard  1789-1832 

For  a  list  of  the  priests  who  have  officiated  at  Mack- 
inac since  1671-1850,  see  "Annals  of  Mackinac." 

Inscription  on  the  tombstone  of  an  Indian  half-breed, 
found  near  the  church  of  La  Pointe,  Wis. : 

To  the  Memory 

of 

Abraham  Beaulieu, 

Born  15th  of  September,  1822, 

Accidentally  Shot 

4th  April,  1844. 

As  a  Mark  of  Affection 

From  His  Brother. 

Short  biographical  sketch  of  Vincent  Roy,  lately  of 
Superior,  Wis. 

Before  ending  this  work  on  Bishop  Baraga,  we  wish 
to  add  a  short  biography  of  the  best  Indian  of  the  North- 
west, Vincent  Roy.     He  was  born  in  or  about  the  year 


••  « 


19 


19 


'82 


HON.  VINCENT  ROY, 


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NOTES. 


473 


1824,  below  Fort  Francis,  on  the  banks  of  Rainy  Lake 
river,  on  the  American  side,  at  the  junction  of  Rainy  Lake 
and  Little  Forks  rivers.  His  grandfather  came  to  that 
place  about  the  year  1810  and  opened  a  farm.  He  had 
abont  fifty  acres  under  cultivation  and  raised  a  great  deal 
of  wheat,  barley,  potatoes,  rootabagas,  and  other  vege- 
tables. He  used  to  trade  with  the  Bois  Fort  band  of 
Chippewa  Indians,  going  to  Mackinac  every  year  to  dis- 
pose of  his  furs  and  to  buy  goods  for  next  year's  trade. 

In  1839  he  took  his  sons,  Vincent  and  Peter,  to  La 
Pointe,  Wis.,  where  Father  Baraga  was  laboring  at  that 
time.  After  his  sister,  Antonia  de  Hoeffern,  had  left  in 
July,  1839,  Father  Baraga  was  accustomed  to  take  his 
meals  at  Mrs.  Lacomb's  house.  She  was  an  aunt  of  Vin- 
cent Roy,  being  his  father's  sister.  It  was  but  natural 
that  young  Vincent  should  feel  drawn  to  the  great  mis- 
sionary and  become  very  intimate  with  h\m.  During  all 
his  life  Mr.  Roy  entertained  a  boundless  love  and  venera- 
tion for  Bishop  Baraga. 

Vincent  Roy  engaged  in  the  fur-trade  to  within  a 
few^  years  before  his  death.  He  had  a  trading-post  at 
Vermillion  Lake,  Minn.,  and  a  store  at  Superior.  It  took 
almost  two  weeks  to  convey  his  goods  and  supplies  to  his 
trading-post.  His  Indian  and  half-breed  packers  were 
obliged  to  go  up  the  St.  Louis  river,  which  is  full  of  rapids, 
at  which  portages  had  to  be  made,  that  is,  canoes  and 
goods  had  to  be  carried  past  the  rapids  to  smooth  water, 
or  overland  from  river  to  river. 

The  first  priest  that  ever  preached  the  Gospel  to  the 
Bois  Fort  Indians  at  Vermillion  Lake,  wa&  P.  Odoric 
Derenthal,  O.  F.  M.,  about  the  year  1883.  He  was  then 
stationed  at  Superior,  whence  he  attended  the  Indian 
missions  of  Fond  du  Lac,  Papashkominitigong  near  Clo- 
quet,  Bamum,  Kettle  River,  Sand  Lake — all  in  Minne- 
sota; besides  Bashaw,  Spirit  Lake,  Yellow  Lake,  Mouth 


474 


APPENDIX. 


r' 


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hi'" 


, jrfn;; 


of  Yellow  River,  Trade  Lake,  and  other  place*  in  Wis- 
coii^in. 

Some  twenty  years  ago  large  deposits  of  iron  ore 
were  discovered  near  Vermillion  Lake,  and  soon  rich 
iron  mines  were  opened  on  the  Mesaba  Range.  This 
caused  an  influx  of  whites  into  that  country  and  Tower, 
Virginia  City,  and  other  mining  towTis  were  started.  A 
large  number  of  Catholics,  many  of  them  Slavonians, 
work  in  those  mines ;  they  are  under  the  pastoral  care  of 
Very  Rev.  Joseph  Bah,  vicar-general  of  the  diocese  of 
Duluth. 

Viui^ent  Roy  married  a  daughter  of  Antoine  Cour- 
noyer,  a  French-Canadian,  a  good  man  and  a  fervent 
Catholic.  We  think  bis  wife's  name  was  Elizabeth. 
She  resided  at  Superior,  Wis.,  with  Mary,  her  sis- 
ter, the  widow  of  Charles  Roy,  deceased,  a  brother  of 
Vincent  Roy.  Vincent  and  his  wife  lived  in  true  con- 
jugal love,  peace,  and  happiness.  He  was  a  model  hus- 
band, kind,  affectionate,  industrious  and  saving.  The 
writer  was  acquainted  with  him  for  many  years  and  he 
can  bear  testimony  to  Mr.  Roy^s  noble.  Christian,  gentle- 
manly behavior.  He  never  drank  a  drop  of  intoxicating 
liquor,  neither  did  he  smoke,  chew,  or  snuff.  He  was 
most  scrupulously  clean,  ncsat  and  well-clad  at  all  times. 
He  was  a.  perfect  gentleraan. 

Mr.  Roy's  house  was  a  model  home.  Although  he 
had  but  little  white  blood  in  his  veins^  his  father  b  ;ing  a 
half-breed,  partly  French,  partly  Indian,  and  his  mother, 
to  the  best  of  our  belief,  a  full-blood  Chippewa,  Vincent 
Roy  had  adopted  in  his  home  l:'fe  and  general  deportment 
the  manners  and  refinement  of  modern  civiliza^;ioii. 

The  writer  dees  not  know  the  exact  time  of  Vincent 
Roy's  coming  to  Superior;  h3  was,  no  doubt,  one  of  the 
oldest  settlers  there,  probably  arriving  there  prior  to  1851. 
His  fur-trade  and  other  business,  especially  the  rise  of  real 
estate  values  following  the  founding  of  West  Superior, 


IV!, 


i       • 


"-■^r;^^ 


NOTES. 


475 


bf  the 


brought  him  considerable  wealth,  which  ho  used  very 
largely  for  the  benefit  of  his  less  fortunate  countrymen 
and  the  good  of  religion.  Liberality  is  a  characteristic 
virtue  of  the  Chippewas  and  Vincent  lioy  possessed  and 
exercised  this  -virtue  in  a  very  remarkable  degree.  "A 
friend  in  need,  a  friend  indeed."  Many  a  poor  Indian 
found  in  Mr.  Roy  such  a  friend.  No  other  Chip- 
pewa in  the  Lake  Superior  country  was  as  liberal  and 
generous  towards  the  needy  and  suffering  as  Mr.  Roy. 
When  Ireland  was  suffering  a  dreadful  famine  about  the 
year  1880,  little  Superior,  with  its  forty-five  Catholic  fam- 
ilies, of  whom  scarcely  a  dozen  were  whites,  contr''  ;ited 
about  Three  Hundred  and  Seventy-five  Dollars  towards 
alleviating  the  poor  people  of  said  island  and  of  the  above* 
given  amount  Mr.  Roy  contributed  a  large  sum. 

Vincent  Roy  was  a  born  leader  among  his  people.  His 
words  and  examples  exercised  an  enrobling,  elevating, 
Christianizing  influence.  His  worthy  wife  nobly  seconded 
her  husband  in  all  his  works  of  charity  and  zeal.  Their 
house  was  the  home  of  priests  and  missionaries,  where 
they  always  received  a  cordial  welcome  and  were  treated 
with  the  greatest  kindness  and  respect.  For  four  years 
the  writer  wa^  aji  almost  daily  visitor  at  Mr.  Roy's  house, 
which  he  frequenred  go  of^'eu  ;;>  o'"der  !o  study  the  Chip- 
pewa language  under  so  ablo  .a  master^  for  Mr.  Roy  spoke 
and  w^rcte  Chippewa,  ']E!ng3,i&h„a'iid  I lenclv fluently. 

Mr.  Roy's  marriage  was  not  blessed  with  children,  but 
this  very  circumstance  was  made  use  of  by  Divine  Provi- 
dence to  make  him  the  father  and  friend  of  his  poor  coun- 
trymen. Ho  was  the  mainstay  of  the  small  congregation 
of  Superior,  which  for  many  years  consisted  chiefly  of  In- 
dians and  half-breeds.  Mr.  Roy  contributed  most  liber- 
ally for  church  purposes  and  the  support  of  the  pastor.  In 
fact,  in  every  good  work  he  was  a  leader,  sparing  neither 
time  nor  money. 

Vincent  Roy  was  also  a  practical  Catholic,  assisting 


'^:^^^"}^^ 


476 


APPENDIX. 


at  holy  Mass  every  Sunday,  and  often  on  week-day. 
Every  day,  summer  and  winter,  sunshine  or  rain,  someone 
of  his  house  would  attend  Mass,  most  generally  his  worthy 
wife,  lier  sister  Mary,  and  their  pious  mother,  Mrs.  Cour- 
noyer.  Mr.  Roy  was  a  frequent  receiver  of  the  holy  Sac- 
raments and  during  the  latter  years  of  his  life  he  would 
go  to  holy  Communion  every  week.  He  prayed  a  great 
deal  at  home  and  read  spiritual  books,  of  which  he  had 
quite  a  number,  with  great  relish. 

Vincent  Roy  was  a  model  citizen,  taking  a  lively  inter- 
est in  all  political  and  social  questions,  especially  those 
that  regarded  his  state  and  city.  He  was  pure  and  modest 
in  his  deportment,  and  the  tongue  of  scandal  never  black- 
ened his  fair  name.  He  was  frank  and  outspoken  in  his 
opinions,  but  without  being  haughty  or  overbearing.  Ho 
was  of  a  joyful,  pleasant  disposition,  and  keenly  relished 
a  good  joke. 

To  sum  up,  Mr.  Roy  was  nature's  nobleman,  a  true 
Christian,  a  patriotic  citizen,  "the  imcrowned  king"  of  the 
Lake  Superior  Chippewas.  His  memory  is  held  in  bene- 
diction by  all  who  knew  him.  He  died  about  three  or  four 
years  ago  in  Superior,  leaving  his  affectionate  wife  and  a 
host  of  friends  to  mourn 'hi&  l')Ssi.'  *'  •  •    ^  •  • '  • 


^•^i^^ 


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